V385.4 


1852 


ILLINOIS  HISTORY  SUfWtY 
LIBRARY 


DOCUMENTS 


RELATING  TO  THE  ORGANIZATION 


OF    THE 


ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL-ROAD  COMPANY, 


(SECOND  EDITION.) 


GEO.  SCOTT  ROE,  STATIONER  AND  PRINTER, 
19  AND  21  MERCHANTS'  EXCHANGE. 


1852. 


-4/-f 


States   tf  &mrffr*. 


DOCUMENTS 


DELATING  TO  THE  ORGANIZATION 


OF    THK 


ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL-ROAD  COMPANY, 

(SECOND  EDITION.) 


GEO.  SCOTT  ROE,  STATIONER  AND  PRINTER, 
19  AND  21  MERCHANTS'  EXOHAMOB. 

1862. 


ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD  CO., 

Annual  Meeting  of  Stockholders  for  the  Election  of 
Directors,  &c,, 

ON  THE  3d  WEDNESDAY  IN  MARCH. 


DIRECTORS. 

His  EXCELLENCY  AUGUSTUS  C.  FRENCH, 

Gov.  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  ex  ojficio. 

JOHN  F:  A.  SANFORD,  N.  York,    ) 

LEROY  M.  WILEY,  Do.        \  Until  Mar.  1853. 

FRANKLIN  HAVEN,  .     Boston,      } 

ROBERT  SCHUYLER,  .     N.  York,     ) 

MORRIS  KETCHUM,        .     Do.        V  Until  Mar.  1854. 

ROB'T 


JONATHAN  STURGES,     N.York,    ) 

THOMAS  W.  LUDLOW,         Do.        \  Until  Mar.  1855. 

JOSEPH  W.  ALSOP,      «*t    Do.        \ 

GEORGE  GRISWOLD.        N.  York,   ) 

GOUVERNEUR  MORRIS,  I  TT  ..,  M  r  18,fi 

e  TIT      •        •      7i/f      •         •      \T  -v     \  Until  Mar.  looo. 
ot  Momssania,  Mornssania,  J\.  Y.     > 

DAVID  A.  NEAL,        .      Boston,      } 

OFFICERS. 

ROBERT  SCHUYLER,  PRESIDENT, 
DAVID  A.  NEAL,  VICE  PRESIDENT, 
SOLOMON  ALOFSEN,  SECRETARY, 
MORRIS  KETCHUM,  TREASURER. 

SOLICITORS. 

W.  H.  BISSELL,  of  Belleville,  Illinois, 
MASON  BRAYMAN.  of  Springjield,  Illinois, 

ENO-INSER  IN  CHIEF. 
ROSWELL  B.  }l\WS,  of  Bridgeport  Connecticut. 


INDEX. 


I.  Act  of  Congress,  donating 'Lands  to  the  States  of  Illinois,  Missis- 

sippi and  Alabama,  in  aid  of  the  construction  of  a  Railroad,    ,      5 

2.  Act  of  Incorporation  of  the  Illinois.  Central  Railroad  Company, 

by  the  State  of  Illinois,    .      ^K^*1^*^     Q«.*W0    1^5*    .      8 

3.  Acceptance  of  the  Charter  by  the  Company,     //K^l^r   K*js     26 

4.  Letter  of  Gov.  French,  acknowledging  the  receipt  of  the  Com- 

pany's acceptance  of  the  Charter,    .        .~  .        .        .        27 

5.  Receipt  from  the  Treasurer  of  the  State  of  Illinois  for  $200,000, 

deposited  with  him  by  the  Company,  according  to  the  provi- 
sions of  the  Charter 27 

6.  Deed  of  the  Executive  of  Illinois  to  the  Company,  of  lands  grant- 

ed by  Congress,  and  of  other  property 28 

7.  Deed  of  Trust  of  the  Company  to  Morris  Ketchum,  John  Moore 

and  Samuel  D.  Lockwood, 30 

8.  Financial  plan  of  the  Company,  submitted  by  the  President  to 

the  Directors,  April  23,  1851,  and  by  them  adopted,        .        .        35 

9.  Report  of  the  President  to  the  Directors,  as  to  the  cost  of  the 

Road  and  Branches,  &c.,  dated  Sept.  12,  1851,        ...        52 

10.  Mortgage  upon  the  Road,  &c.,  executed  by  the  Company  to 
Morris  Ketchum,  John  Moore  and  Samuel  D.  Lockwood,  to 
secure  the  payment  of  $17,000,000  of  Construction  Bonds,  .  60 

II.  "Illinois  Central  Railroad.    Its  Position  and  Prospects,"  by 

David  A.  Neal,  Vice  President  of  the  Company,  dated  July  1, 

1851 ,       ...       78 

12.  Extract  of  a  Letter  of  Governor  French,  showing  his  views  of 

Mr.  Neal's  Pamphlet,      &J-MH    l^ 97 

13.  Letter  of  Robert  Rantoul,  Jr.,  one  of  the  Directors  of  the  Com- 

pany, on  the  value  of  the  Public  Lands  of  Illinois,  dated  Sep- 
tember 1,  1851, 99 

M.  Form  of  Construction  Bonds  to  be  issued  by  the  Company,        .      149 


States  of 
ACT    OF    CONGRESS. 

31  CONGRESS.— Ses.  1.— Oh.  61. 
Approved  20  September,  1850. 


AN  ACT  granting  the  right  of  way,  and  making  a  grant 
of  land  to  the  States  of  Illinois,  Mississippi  and  Alabama, 
in  aid  of  the  construction  of  a  Railroad  from  Chicago  to 
Mobile. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representa- 
tives of  the  United  States  of  America,  in  Congress  assem- 
bled, That  the  right  of  way  through  the  public  lands  be,  and 
the  same  is  hereby  granted  to  the  State  of  Illinois  for  the 
construction  of  a  Railroad  from  the  Southern  terminus  of 
the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal  to  a  point  at  or  near  the 
junction  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  Rivers,  with  a  branch 
of  the  same  to  Chicago  on  Lake  Michigan,  and  another  via 
the  town  of  Galena,  in  said  State,  to  Dubuque,  in  the  State 
of  Iowa,  with  the  right,  also,  to  take  necessary  materials  of 
earth,  stones,  timber,  &c.,  for  the  construction  thereof: 
Provided,  That  the  right  of  way  shall  not  exceed  one  hun- 
dred feet  on  each  side  of  the  length  thereof;  and  a  copy  of 
the  survey  of  said  road  and  branches,  made  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  Legislature,  shall  be  forwarded  to  the  proper  lo- 
cal land  offices  respectively,  and  to  the  General  Land  Office 
at  Washington  City,  within  ninety  days  after  the  completion 
of  the  same. 

SEC.  2.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  there  be  and  is 
hereby  granted  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  for  the  purpose  of 
aiding  in  making  the  Railroad  and  branches  aforesaid,  every 
alternate  section  of  land  designated  by  even  numbers,  for  six 


Sections  in  width  on  each  side  of  said  road  and  branches  ;' 
but  in  case  it  shall  appear  that  the  United  States  have  when 
the  line  or  route  of  said  road  and  branches  is  definitely  fix- 
ed by  the  authority  aforesaid,  sold  any  part  of  any  section 
hereby  granted,  or  that  the  right  of  pre-emption  has  attach- 
ed to  the  same,  then  it  shall  be  lawful  for  any  agent  or  agents 
to  be  appointed  by  the  Governor  of  said  State,  to  select, 
subject  to  the  approval  aforesaid;  from  the  lands  of  the 
United  States  most  contiguous  to  the  tier  of  sections  above 
specified,  so  much  land  in  alternate  sections  or  parts  of  sec- 
tions, as  shall  be  equal  to  such  lands  as  the  United  States 
have  sold,  or  to  which  the  right  of  pre-emption  has  attached 
as  aforesaid,  which  lands  being  equal  in  quantity  to  one-half 
of  six  sections  in  width  on  each  side  of  said  road  and  branches 
the  State  of  Illinois  shall  have  and  hold  to  and  for  the  use 
and  purpose  aforesaid :  Provided,  That  the  lands  to  be  so 
located  shall  in  no  case  be  further  than  fifteen  miles  from 
the  line  of  the  road.     And  further  provided,  The  construc- 
tion of  said  road  shall  be  commenced  at  its  southern  termi- 
nus, at  or  near  the  junction  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi 
Rivers,  and  its  northern  terminus  upon  the  Illinois  and 
Michigan  Canal  simultaneously,  and  continued  from  each  of 
said  points  until  completed,  when  said  branch  roads  shall 
be  constructed,  according  to  the  survey  and  location  thereof: 
Provided  further,  That  the  lands  hereby  granted  shall  be 
applied  in  the  construction  of  said  road  and  branches  respec- 
tively, in  quantities  corresponding  with  the  grant  for  each, 
and  shall  be  disposed  of  only  as  the  work  progresses,  and 
shall  be  applied  to  no  other  purpose  whatsoever.     And  pro- 
vided further,  That  any  and  all  lands  reserved  to  the  United 
States  by  the  Act  entitled  '•  An  Act  to  grant  a  quantity  of 
land  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  in 
opening  a  Canal  to  connect  the  waters  of  the  Illinois  River 
with  those  of  Lake  Michigan,  approved  March  second,  eigh- 
teen hundred  and  twenty-seven,"  be  and  the  same  are  here- 
by reserved  to  the  United  States  from  the  operations  of  this 
Act. 

SEC.  3.     And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  sections  and 
parts  of  sections  of  land  which,  by  such  grant;  shall  remain 


rto  the  United  States,  within  six  miles  on  each  side  of  said 
road  and  branches,  shall  not  be  sold  for  less  than  double  the 
minimum  price  of  the  public  lands  when  sold. 

SEC.  4.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  the  said  lands 
hereby  granted  to  the  said  State,  shall  be  subject  to  the  dis- 
posal of  the  Legislature  thereof,  for  the  purpose  aforesaid 
and  no  other ;  and  the  said  Railroad  and  branches  shall  be 
and  remain  a  public  highway,  for  the  use  of  the  Government 
of  the  United  States,  free  from  toll  or  other  charge,  upon 
the  transportation  of  any  property  or  troops  of  the  United 
States. 

SEC.  5.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  if  the  said  Kail- 
road  shall  not  be  completed  within  ten  years,  the  said  State 
of  Illinois  shall  be  bound  to  pay  to  the  United  States  the 
amount  which  may  be  received  upon  the  sale  of  any  part  of 
said  lands  by  said  State,  the  title  to  the  purchasers  under 
said  State  remaining  valid  ;  and  the  title  to  the  residue  of 
said  lands  shall  reinvest  in  the  United  States,  to  have  and 
hold  the  same  in  the  same  manner  as  if  this  Act  had  not 
been  passed. 

SEC.  6.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  the  United 
States  Mail  shall  at  all  times  be  transported  on  the  said 
Rail  Road,  under  the  direction  of  the  Post  Office  Depart- 
ment, at  such  price  as  the  Congress  may  by  law  direct. 

SEC.  7.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  in  order  to  aid 
in  the  continuation  of  said  Central  Railroad  from  the  mouth 
of  the  Ohio  River  to  the  City  of  Mobile,  all  the  rights  pri- 
vileges and  liabilities  hereinbefore  conferred  on  the  State  of 
Illinois,  shall  be  granted  to  the  States  of  Alabama  and  Mis- 
sissippi respectively,  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  in  the  con- 
struction of  a  Railroad  from  said  City  of  Mobile  to  a  point 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio  River,  and  that  public  lands  of 
the  United  States  to  the  same  extent  in  proportion  to  the 
length  of  the  road  on  the  same  terms,  limitations  and  re- 
strictions in  every  respect,  shall  be,  and  is  hereby  granted 
to  said  States  of  Alabama  and  Mississippi  respectively. 
Approved  September  20,  1850. 


State  of  XUfuofff. 

Illinois.]  SENATE.  [17th  ASSEM. 


APPROVED  FEBRUARY  10,  1851. 

AN   ACT  to  incorporate  the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL. 
ROAD  COMPANY. 


WHEREAS,  in  the  judgment  of  this  General  Assembly,  the 
object  of  incorporating  the  CENTRAL  RAILROAD  COM- 
PANY cannot  be  attained  under  general  laws :  Therefore, 
SEC.  1.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  People  of  the  State  of  Illi- 
nois represented  in  General  Assembly,  That  Robert  Schuy- 
ler,  George  Griswold,  Gouverneur  Morris,  Franklin  Haven, 
David  A.  Neal,  Robert  Rantoul,  junior,  Jonathan  Sturges, 
George  W.  Ludlow,*  John  F.  A.  Sandford,  Henry  Grinnell, 
William  H.  Aspinwall,  Leroy  Wiley,t  and  Joseph  W. 
Alsop,  and  all  such  persons  as  shall  hereafter  become 
Stockholders  in  the  Company  hereby  incorporated,  shall  be 
a  body  politic  and  corporate,  by  the  name  and  style  of  the 
"  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY  ;"  and  under 
that  name  and  style,  shall  be  capable  of  sueing  and  being 
sued,  impleading  and  being  impleaded,  defending  and  being 
defended  against,  in  law  and  equity,  in  all  courts  and  places 
whatsoever,  in  like  manner  and  as  fully  as  natural  persons  \ 
may  make  and  use  a  common  seal,  and  alter  or  renew  the 
same  at  pleasure ;  and  by  their  said  corporate  name  and 
style,  shall  be  capable,  in  law,  of  contracting  and  being  con- 
tracted with,  shall  be  and  are  hereby  invested  with  all  the 
powers,  privileges,  immunities  and  franchises,  and  of  acquir- 
ing by  purchase  or  otherwise,  and  of  holding  and  conveying 
real  and  personal  estate,  which  may  be  needful  to  carry  into 
effect  fully  the  purposes  and  objects  of  this  Act. 

*  Thomas  W.  Ludlow,  of  New  York,  t  Leroy  M.  Wiley  of  New  York, 


SEC.  2.  The  said  corporation  is  hereby  authorized  and 
empowered  to  survey,  locate,  construct,  complete,  alter,  main- 
tain and  operate  a  Railroad,  with  one  or  more  tracks  or  lines 
of  rails,  from  the  southern  terminus  of  the  Illinois  and  Mi- 
chigan Canal,  to  a  point  at  the  City  of  Cairo,  with  a  branch 
of  the  same  to  the  City  of  Chicago,  on  Lake  Michigan  ;  and 
also  a  branch,  via  the  City  of  Galena,  to  a  point  on  the  Mis- 
sissippi river,  opposite  the  town  of  Dubuque,  in  the  State 
of  Iowa. 

SEC.  3.  The  said  corporation  shall  have  right  of  way 
upon,  and  may  appropriate  to  its  sole  use  and  control,  for 
the  purposes  contemplated  herein,  land  not  exceeding  two 
hundred  feet  in  width  through  its  entire  length  ;  may  enter 
upon  and  take  possession  of,  and  use  all  and  singular  any 
lands,  streams  and  materials  of  every  kind,  for  the  location 
of  depots  and  stopping  stages,  for  the  purpose  of  construct- 
ing bridges,  dams,  embankments,  excavations,  station 
grounds,  spoil  banks,  turnouts,  engine  houses,  shops  and 
other  buildings  necessary  for  the  construction,  completing, 
altering,  maintaining,  preserving  and  complete  operation  of 
said  road.  All  such  lands,  waters,  materials  and  privileges 
belonging  to  the  State,  are  hereby  granted  to  said  corpora- 
tion for  said  purposes  ;  but  when  owned  or  belonging  to  any 
person,  company  or  corporation,  and  cannot  be  obtained  by 
voluntary  grant  or  release,  the  same  may  be  taken  and  paid 
for,  if  any  damages  are  awarded,  in  the  manner  provided  in 
"  An  Act  to  provide  for  a  general  system  of  Railroad  Incor- 
porations," approved  November  5th,  1849  ;  and  the  final 
decision  or  award  shall  vest  in  the  corporation  hereby  cre- 
ated, all  the  rights,  franchises  and  immunities  in  said  Act 
contemplated  and  provided :  Provided,  That  the  appeal  al- 
lowed by  the  provisions  of  the  aforesaid  Act,  approved  the 
5th  of  November,  1849,  shall  not  affect  the  possession,  by 
such  company,  of  the  land  appraised,  and  when  the  appeal 
is  made  by  others  than  the  company,  the  same  shall  not  be 
allowed,  except  on  a  stipulation  of  the  party  appealing  that 
the  said  company  may  enter  upon,  and  use  the  lands  describ- 
ed in  the  petition,  for  the  uses  and  purposes  in  said  petition 
set  forth,  upon  said  company  giving  bond  and  security,  to  be 


10 

approved  by  tfie  Clerk  of  said  Court,  that  they  will  pay  all 
costs  and  damages  that  may  be  awarded  against  said  com- 
pany on  the  hearing  of  said  appeal :  Provided,  That  noth- 
ing in  this  section  contained  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  au- 
thorize the  said  corporation  to  interrupt  the  navigation  of 
said  stream. 

SEC.  4.  The  capital  stock  of  said  corporation  shall  be  one 
million  of  dollars,  which  may  be  increased,  from  time  to 
time,  to  any  sum  not  exceeding  the  entire  amount  expend- 
ed on  account  of  said  road,  divided  into  shares  of  one  hun- 
dred dollars  each,  which  shall  be  deemed  personal  property, 
and  may  be  issued  and  transferred  in  such  manner  and  at 
such  places  as  may  be  ordered  and  provided  by  the  board 
of  directors,  who  shall  have  power  to  require  the  payment  of 
sums  subscribed  by  stockholders,  in  such  manner  and  on 
such  terms  as  they  may  deem  proper ;  and  on  refusal  or  ne- 
glect on  the  part  of  stockholders,  or  any  of  them,  to  make 
payment,  on  the  requisition  of  the  board  of  directors,  the 
shares  of  such  delinquents  may,  after  thirty  days'  public  no- 
tice, be  sold  at  public  auction,  under  such  rules  as  said  board 
of  directors  may  adopt — the  surplus  money,  if  any  remains, 
after  deducting  the  payments  due,  with  the  interest  and  the 
necessary  costs  of  sale,  to  be  paid  to  such  delinquent  stock- 
holders. The  board  of  directors  hereby  appointed,  shall 
cause  books  to  be  opened  for  subscriptions  to  said  stock,  in 
such  manner  and  at  such  time  and  places  as  they  shall 
direct. 

SEC.  5.  All  the  corporate  powers  of  said  company  shall 
be  vested  in  and  be  exercised  by  a  board  of  directors,  and 
such  officers  and  agents  as  they  shall  appoint.  The  board 
of  directors  shall  consist  of  not  less  than  twelve  stockholders 
— three  of  whom  shall  be  chosen  every  year  by  the  stock- 
holders— each  share  having  one  vote,  to  be  given  in  person 
or  by  proxy — and  the  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  who 
shall  be  a  director,  ex-officio,  perpetually,  voting  in  person 
or  by  proxy  ;  each  director,  successively  elected,  to  continue 
in  office  until  his  successor  is  elected  and  qualified.  Vacan- 
cies in  the  board  may  be  filled  by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of 
the  directors  remaining ;  such  appointees  to  continue  in 


11 


office  until  the  next  regular  election  of  directors ;  but  no 
person  shall  be  so  elected  who  shall  not  have  been  openly 
nominated  at  a  meeting  of  the  directors,  at  least  one  week 
before  the  time  appointed  for  such  election.  Other  officers-, 
agents  and  servants,  whether  members  of  the  board,  or  other- 
wise, may  be  appointed,  employed,  paid  and  dismissed,  un- 
der such  rules  and  regulations  as  the  board  of  directors  may 
from  time  to  time,  adopt. 

SEC.  6.  The  following  named  persons  shall  constitute  the 
first  board  of  directors,  to  wit :  Robert  Schuyler,  George 
Griswold,  Gouverneur  Morris,  Franklin  Haven,  David  A. 
Neal,  Robert  Rantoul,  jr.,  Jonathan  Sturges,  George  W. 
Ludlow,  John  F.  A  Sandford,  Henry  Grinnell,  Joseph  W. 
Alsop,  Leroy  Wiley,  with  the  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illin- 
ois, for  the  time  being,  whose  power  shall  commence  and  be 
in  full  force  from  and  after  the  day  this  Act  shall  be  accept- 
ed, in  the  manner  herein  provided. 

SEC.  7.  The  president  and  directors,  for  the  time  being, 
are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered,  by  themselves,  their 
officers  or  agents,  to  execute  all  the  powers  herein  granted, 
for  the  purpose  of  surveying,  locating,  constructing,  com- 
pleting, altering,  maintaining  and  operating  said  road  and 
branches  ;  and  for  the  transportation  upon  the  same  of  per- 
sons, goods,  wares  and  merchandize,  with  all  such  powers 
and  authority  of  control  and  management  of  the  affairs  of 
said  company,  as  may  be  necessary  and  proper  to  carry  into 
full  and  complete  effect  the  meaning  and  intent  of  this  Act. 

SEC.  8.  The  said  company  shall  have  power  to  make, 
ordain  and  establish  all  such  by-laws,  rules  and  regulations 
as  may  be  deemed  expedient  and  necessary  to  fulfil  the  pur- 
poses and  carry  into  effect  the  provisions  of  this  Act,  and 
for  the  well  ordering,  regulating  and  securing  the  affairs, 
business  and  interests  of  the  company  :  Provided,  that  the 
same  be  not  repugnant  to  the  constitution  and  laws  of  the 
United  States  or  of  this  State,  or  repugnant  to  this  Act. 
The  board  of  directors  shall  have  power  to  establish  such 
rates  of  toll  for  the  conveyance  of  persons  and  property  upon 
the  same  as  they  shall,  from  time  to  time,  by  their  by-laws; 
direct  and  determine,  and  to  levy  and  collect  the  same  for 


12 

the  use  of  the  said  company.  The  transportation  of  per- 
sons and  property  ;  the  width  of  track;  the  construction  of 
wheels  ;  the  form  and  size  of  cars  ;  the  weight  of  loads  • 
and  all  other  matters  and  things  respecting  the  use  of  said 
road,  and  the  conveyance  of  passengers  and  property,  shall 
be  in  conformity  to  such  rules  and  regulations  as  said  board 
of  directors  shall  from  time  to  time  determine.  Nothing  in 
this  Act  contained  shall  authorize  said  corporation  to  make 
a  location  of  their  track  within  any  city,  without  the  consent 
of  the  common  council  of  said  city. 

SEC.  9.  If  any  person  shall  carelessly,  wilfully,  malici- 
ously, or  wantonly  delay,  hinder,  or  obstruct  the  passage  of 
any  carriage  on  said  road  or  branches,  or  shall  place,  or 
cause  to  be  placed  any  material  thereon,  or  in  any  way  tres- 
pass upon,  spoil,  injure,  or  destroy  said  road  or  branches,  or 
any  part  thereof,  or  anything  belonging  or  pertaining  there- 
to, or  employed  or  used  in  connection  with  its  location,  sur- 
vey, construction,  or  management,  all  persons  committing, 
or  aiding  and  abetting  in  the  commission  of  such  trespass 
or  offence,  shall  forfeit  and  pay  to  the  said  company  treble 
such  damages  as  shall  be  proved  before  any  court  of  com- 
petent jurisdiction;  and  further,  such  offenders  shall  be 
liable  to  indictment  in  the  county  within  whose  jurisdiction 
the  offence  may  be  committed,  and  to  pay  a  fine  of  not  less 
than  thirty,  nor  more  than  one  hundred  dollars,  to  the  use 
of  the  people  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  or  may  be  imprisoned 
in  the  penitentiary  for  a  term  not  exceeding  five  years,  in 
the  discretion  of  the  court  before  whom  the  same  shall  be 
tried. 

SEC.  10.  Said  corporation  may  construct  their  said  road 
and  branches  over  or  across  any  stream  of  water,  water 
course,  road,  highway,  railroad  or  canal,  which  the  route  of 
its  road  shall  intersect,  but  the  corporation  shall  restore  the 
stream  or  water  course,  road  or  highway,  thus  intersected, 
to  its  former  state,  or  in  a  sufficient  manner  not  to  have  im- 
paired its  usefulness,  "Whenever  the  track  of  said  railroad 
shall  cross  a  road  or  highway,  such  road  or  highway  may  be 
carried  under  or  over  said  track,  as  may  be  found  most  ex- 
pedient ;  and  in  case  where  an  embankment  or  cutting  shall 


13 

make  a  change  in  the  line  of  such  road  or  highway  desirable, 
with  a  view  to  a  more  easy  ascent  or  descent,  the  said  com- 
pany may  take  such  additional  lands  for  the  construction  of 
such  roads  or  highway  as  may  be  deemed  requisite  by  said 
corporation,  unless  the  lands  so  taken  shall  be  purchased  or 
voluntarily  given  for  the  purposes  aforesaid.  Compensation 
therefore  shall  be  ascertained  in  the  manner  in  this  Act 
•provided,  as  nearly  as  may  be,  and  duly  made  by  said  cor- 
poration to  the  owners  and  persons  interested  in  such  lands. 
The  same  when  so  taken  or  compensation  made,  to  become 
a  part  of  such  intersecting  road  or  highway,  in  such  manner 
and  by  such  tenure  as  the  adjacent  parts  of  the  -same  high- 
way may  be  held  for  highway  purposes. 

SEC.  11.  And  when  the  route  of  the  said  road,  or  either 
of  its  branches,  as  provided  in  this  Act,  shall  intersect,  cross, 
or  connect  with,  or  run  along  or  upon  the  line  of  any  other 
•railroad  now  constructing,  or  now  in  process  of  construction 
by  any  other  company,  the  company  to  be  formed  under  this 
Act  shall  join  with  such  other  company,  in  making  all  neces- 
sary turn-outs,  sidelings  and  switches,  and  other  convenien- 
ces necessary  to  further  the  objects  of  such  connection ;  and 
when  the  route  of  any  other  company  shall  be  occupied  as 
aforesaid  just  compensation  shall  be  made  to  such  other  com- 
pany, for  all  expenditures  made  by  them,  in  the  location  of 
such  road  ;  and  all  railroads  so  constructed,  or  now  in  pro- 
cess of  construction,  intersected  as  aforesaid,  and  connec- 
tions made  with  the  roads  authorized  to  be  built  by  this  Act, 
shall  be  made,  and  facilities  in  the  transhipment  of  freight 
and  passengers,  and  interchange  of  cars  afforded  by  each, 
over  the  respective  roads,  upon  fair  and  equitable  terms,  and 
in  case  the  said  companies  cannot  agree  upon  the  amount 
of  compensation  to  be  made  therefor,  or  the  points  and  man- 
ner of  such  crossings  and  connections,  the  transhipment  of 
freight  and  passengers,  and  interchange  of  cars,  the  same 
shall  be  ascertained  and  determined  by  three  commissioners, 
one  to  be  chosen  by  each  of  said  companies,  and  the  two  so 
chosen  to  choose  a  third,  and  in  case  they  cannot  agree  upon 
the  choice  of  a  third  person,  he  shall  be  appointed  by  the 

Judge  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the 

2 


14 

District  of  Illinois ;  and  the  decision  of  the  three,  wh  en  so 
chosen,  shall  be  final ;  Provided,  That  this  corporation  shall 
not  take  and  run  on  the  road  or  line  of  any  such  company 
which  is  now  being  constructed,  without  the  consent  and 
agreement  of  the  company  whose  road  or  line  is  proposed  so 
to  be  used. 

SEC.  12.  Every  conductor,  baggage  master,  engineer, 
brakeman  or  other  servant  of  said  corporation  employed  in  a 
passenger  train,  or  at  stations  for  passengers,  shall  wear  upon 
his  hat  or  cap  a  badge,  which  shall  indicate  his  office,  the  ini- 
tial letters  or  style  of  the  corporation.  No  conductor  or  col- 
lector, without  such  badge,  shall  demand  or  be  entitled  to 
receive  from  any  passenger  any  fare,  toll  or  ticket,  or  exercise 
any  of  the  powers  of  his  office,  and  no  other  of  said  officers, 
or  servants,  without  such  badge,  shall  have  any  authority  to 
meddle  or  interfere  with  any  passenger,  his  baggage  or  pro- 
perty. In  forming  passenger  trains,  baggage  or  freight,  or 
merchandise,  or  lumber  cars  shall  not  be  placed  in  rear  of 
passenger  cars ;  and  if  they,  or  any  of  them,  shall  be  so 
placed,  and  any  accident  shall  happen  to  life  or  limb,  the 
officer  or  agent  who  so  directed  or  knowingly  suffered  such 
arrangement,  and  the  conductor  or  engineer  of  the  train, 
shall  each  and  all  be  held  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  be 
punished  accordingly. 

SEC.  13.  A  bell  of  at  least  thirty  pounds  weight,  or  a 
steam  whistle,  shall  be  placed  on  each  locomotive  engine, 
and  shall  be  rung  or  whistled  at  the  distance  of  at  least 
eighty  rods  from  the  place  where  the  said  road  shall  cross 
any  other  road  or  street,  and  be  kept  ringing  or  whistling  at 
intervals  until  it  shall  have  crossed  said  road  or  street,  un- 
der a  penalty  of  fifty  dollars  for  every  neglect,  to  be  paid  by 
said  corporation,  one  half  thereof  to  go  to  the  informer,  and 
the  other  half  to  the  State,  and  to  be  liable  for  all  damages 
which  shall  be  sustained  by  any  persons  by  reason  of  such 
neglect.  Said  corporation  shall  cause  boards  to  be  placed, 
well  supported  by  posts  or  otherwise,  and  constantly  main- 
tained across  each  public  road  or  street,  where  the  same  is 
crossed  by  the  Railroad,  on  such  elevation  as  not  to  obstruct 
the  travel,  and  to  be  easily  seen  by  travellers,  and  on  each 


15 

side  of  said  board  shall  be  painted  in  capital  letters,  of  at 
least  the  size  of  nine  inches  each,  the  words  :  "  Railroad 
Crossing  !  Look  out  for  the  Cars"  But  this  provisions 
shall  not  apply  to  streets  or  cities,  or  villages,  unless  the 
corporation  be  required  to  put  up  such  boards  by  the  officers 
having  charge  of  such  streets. 

SEC.  14.  Said  corporation  shall,  within  a  reasonable  time 
after  said  road  and  branches  shall  have  been  located,  cause 
to  be  made  a  map  and  profile  thereof,  and  of  the  land  taken 
and  obtained  for  the  use  of  such  road  and  branches,  and  file 
the  same  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  and  also  like 
maps  of  the  parts  thereof  located  in  the  diflferent  counties 
through  which  the  same  may  pass,  and  cause  the  same  to 
be  recorded  in  the  office  for  recording  deeds  in  the  County 
in  which  said  parts  of  said  road  and  branches  shall  lie. 

SEC.  15.  For  the  purpose  of  securing  the  construction  of 
said  road  and  branches,  the  right  of  way,  and  all  the  lands 
which  may  be  selected  along  the  lines  of  said  road  and 
branches,  within  this  State,  under  the  grant  made  by  the 
government  of  the  United  States  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  by 
virtue  of  "  An  Act  granting  the  right  of  way,  and  making 
a  grant  of  land  to  the  States  of  Illinois,  Mississippi  and 
Alabama,  in  aid  of  the  construction  of  a  Railroad  from  Chi- 
cago to  Mobile,"  passed  September  twentieth  (20)  eighteen 
hundred  and  fifty  (1850 ;)  and  also  the  right  of  way  which 
the  State  of  Illinois  has  heretofore  obtained  along  and  on 
the  line  of  said  Railroad  and  branches,  as  heretofore  located 
and  surveyed,  for  the  uses  of  the  same,  as  well  as  the  lot  of 
ground  obtained  by  the  State  within  the  City  of  Cairo,  for 
a  depot,  and  all  the  grading,  embankments,  excavations,  sur- 
veys, work,  materials,  personal  property,  profiles,  plats,  and 
papers,  constructed,  procured,  furnished  and  done  by  or  in 
behalf  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  for  or  on  account  of  said  road 
and  branches,  also  the  right  of  way  over  and  through  lands 
owned  by  the  State,  are  hereby  ceded  and  granted  to  said 
corporation,  for  the  only  and  sole  purpose  of  surveying,  loca- 
ting, constructing,  completing,  altering,  maintaining  and 
operating  said  road  and  branches,  as  in  this  Act  provided> 
and  in  the  manner  following — that  is  to  say '  Immediately 


16 

upon  the  organization  of  said  company,  and  the  presentation? 
to  the  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  of  a  certificate? 
signed  by  the  corporators  hereinbefore  named,  and  duly  ac- 
knowledged, accepting  of  this  Act  of  Incorporation,  and  cer- 
tifying to  the  due  organization  of  said  corporation — to  the 
subscription  to  the  capital  stock  thereof  by  the  corporators 
hereinbefore  named,  and  their  associates,  of  the  sum  of  one 
million  of  dollars,  and  the  bona  fide  payment  of  twenty  per 
cent,  thereon,  to  the  treasurer  of  said  Company,  verified  by 
the  affidavits  of  the  president  and  treasurer  of  said  Com- 
pany ;  (which  said  certificates  shall  be  filed  in  the  office  of 
the  Secretary  of  State,)  and  after  three  hundred  thousand 
dollars  of  registered  Canal  bonds  or  funded  internal  im- 
provement bonds  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  or  two  hundred 
thousand  dollars  in  specie,  or  two  hundred  thousand  dollars 
of  six  per  cent.  United  States  stock,  shall  have  been  by  said  , 
corporation  deposited  with  the  Treasurer  of  the  State  of 
Illinois,  which  shall  be  safely  preserved  and  kept  in  the 
Treasury  of  said  State,  upon  the  faith  of  the  same,  to  be  re- 
turned to  or  paid  over  to  said  corporation,  upon  the  full  com- 
pletion and  operation  of  fifty  miles  of  said  Railroad,  by  the 
said  corporation,  according  to  the  provisions  of  their  said 
charter,  the  said  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois  shall,  in 
his  official  capacity,  and  in  behalf  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  and 
under  the  great  seal  thereof,  execute  and  deliver  to  the  said 
Company  a  deed,  in  fee  simple,  of  all  said  lands  granted  by 
the  government  of  the  United  States,  under  the  Act  of  Con- 
gress aforesaid,  said  depot  lot  at  Cairo,  right  of  way,  grading, 
embankments,  excavations,  surveys,  work,  materials,  profiksr 
plats  and  papers,hereinafter  described  and  set  forth  or  in  any 
way  appertaining  to  said  road  and  branches  :  Provided.  That 
said  company  shall  simultaneously  with  the  execution  of  said 
deed  by  said  Governor,  execute  a  deed  of  trust  to  the  persons 
and  for  the  purposes  hereinafter  named  and  expresed.  And 
provided  further,  That  the  deed,  in  fee  simple,  to  be  execut- 
ed by  the  Governor  as  aforesaid,  shall  recite,  at  full  length, 
the  Act  of  Congress  aforesaid,  this  Act  and  the  deed  of  trust 
aforesaid,  Said  deed  of  trust  shall  be  executed  to  Morris 
John  Moore  and  Samuel  I).  Lockwood,  as  True- 


17 

tee?,  and  shall  include  and  convey  to  said  trustees  and  their 
successors,  everything  included  and  conveyed  in  and  by  said 
deed,  in  fee  simple,  and  in  addition  thereto,  the  Kailrcad  or 
Railroads  which  may  be  built  upon  or  along  said  track  -or 
tracks,  line  or  lines,  and  materials,  for  the  construction 
thereof,  with  all  and  singular  the  buildings,  shops,  engi  ne 
houses,  turn-outs,  stations  and  real  estate  of  every  nature 
and  description  belonging  or  to  belong  to,  or  in  anywise 
appertaining  or  to  appertain  to  said  road  and  branches,  for 
the  uses,  trusts  and  purposes  following,  that  ia  to  say : 

First.     To  secure  and  guarantee  to  the  State  of  Illinois, 
the  first  and  prior  lien  on  every  thing  conveyed  by  said  deed 
of  trust,  of  every  name,  character  and  description,  for  secu- 
rity, as  follows;  Firstly — The  constructing,  completing  and 
furnishing  said  road  and  branches,  in  the  manner  and  time, 
and  upon  conditions  in  this  Act  provided.     Secondly — For 
the  faithful  application  of  all  money  or  property  arising  from 
the  sale  of  lands,  or  obtained  upon  the  faith  of  the  same,  as 
hereafter  authorized,  to  the  constructing,  completing,  equip- 
ping and  furnishing  said  road  and  branches,  in  accordance 
with   the   terms  of  this   Act  and  said  Act  of  Congress, 
Thirdly — The   indemnification   of  the   State  of   Illinois 
against  all  and  every  claim  of  the  United  States  govern- 
ment, for  proceeds  of  sale  of  lands  made  by  said  Company, 
under  the  provisions  of  this  Act,  in  the  event  said  road  and' 
branches  shall  not  be  completed,  as  required  by  the  Act  o 
Congress  above  referred  to.     Fourthly — The  lien  hereby- 
created  shall  take  and  have  precedence  of  all  demands,  in* 
cumbrances,    mortgages,   bonds,   judgments   and  decrees^ 
against  said  corporation  or  said  property,  except  so  far  as 
the  absolute  power  of  selling  said   lands,  or  any  portion 
thereof,  is  herein  provided  for :  Provided,  That  in  case  fifty 
miles  of  the  said  road  shall  not  be  constructed,  according  to 
the  provisions  of  this  Act,  within  two  years,  from  and  after 
the  date  of  the  organization  of  the  Company  under  the  same, 
the  bonds  or  money  herein  provided  to  be  deposited  with 
the  Treasurer  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  shall  become  forfeited 
to  and  become  the  property  of  the  said  State,  subject  to  tko 
disposition  of  the  Legislature  thereof. 


18 

Second.  That  on  its  organization,  said  Company  may 
enter  upon,  take  and  receive  possession  of  the  said  tracks 
or  lines,  for  the  purpose  of  surveying,  locating,  working  and 
constructing  said  road  and  branches,  with  the  right  of  way, 
land,  grading,  embankments,  excavations,  surveys,  work, 
materials,  property,  profiles,  plats  and  papers  aforesaid,  to 
be  occupied,  used  and  employed,  for  the  purposes  contem- 
plated by  this  Act,  under  whosesoevers  control  the  same 
may  be. 

Third.  That  said  Company  shall  proceed  to  locate,  sur- 
vey and  lay  out,  construct  and  complete  said  road  and 
branches,  through  the  entire  length  thereof — the  main  trunk 
thereof,  or  central  line,  to  run  from  the  City  of  Cairo  to  the 
southern  termination  of  the  Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal, 
passing  not  more  than  five  miles  from  the  northeast  corner 
of  township  twenty-one  north,  range  two  east  of  the  third 
principal  meredian,  and  no  where  departing  more  than 
seventeen  miles  from  a  straight  line  between  said  City  of 
Cairo,  and  said  southern  termination  of  said  Canal,  with  a 
branch  running  from  the  last  mentioned  point,  upon  the 
most  eligible  route,  to  the  City  of  Galena  ;  thence  to  a  point 
on  the  Mississippi  River,  opposite  the  City  of  Dubuque,  in 
the  State  of  Iowa ;  with  a  branch  also  diverging  from  the 
main  track,  at  a  point  not  north  of  the  parallel  of  thirty- 
nine  and  a  half  degrees  north  latitude,  and  running  on  the 
most  eligible  route  into  the  City  of  Chicago,  on  Lake  Michi- 
gan. That  the  central  road  or  main  track  shall  be  comple- 
ted, with  at  least  one  line  of  rails,  or  single  track,  with  the 
necessary  turn-outs,  stations,  equipments  and  furnishings, 
within  four  years  from  the  date  of  the  execution  of  said  deed 
of  trust,  and  the  branches  within  six  years  from  the  said 
date — said  roads  to  be  made  equal,  in  all  respects,  to  the 
road  leading  from  Boston  to  Albany,  usually  known  as  the 
Great  Western  Railway,  with  such  improvements  as  expe- 
rience shall  have  shown  to  be  expedient — the  central  or 
main  line  to  be  first  commenced,  and  to  be  continued  to  com- 
pletion, 

Fourth.  A  portion  of  said  lands,  so  conveyed  to  said 
trustees,  not  exceeding  one-fourth  part  thereof  in  value,  to 


19 

Tbe  designated  by  said  Company,  shall  be  held  by  said  trus- 
tees, free  from  all  incumbrances,  for  purposes  of  sale,  from 
time  to  time,  on  the  requisition  of  said  Company,  for  the 
purpose  of  raising  funds  for  the  payment  of  interest  on  loans 
in  case  of  deficiency  from  other  sources,  and  for  such  ex  pen 
ditures  as  the  exigencies  of  the  business  of  the  Company 
may  require  :  Provided,  That  no  portion  of  said  fourth  part 
of  said  lands  shall  be  sold  until  said  road  and  branches  shall 
have  been  surveyed  and  located,  and  the  work  actually  com- 
menced on  the  main  road :  Provided  further,  That  no  por 
tion  of  said  lands  so  held  by  said  trustees,  free  from  all  in 
cumbrance  for  said  purposes,  shall  be  sold  or  offered  for  sale, 
until  the  said  trustees  shall  be  satisfied  that  a  sum  of  money 
h  as  been  actually  expended  upon  the  construction  of  a  sec- 
tion, of  at  least  fifty  miles  of  said  road,  adjacent  to  said 
lands,  equal  in  amount  to  the  sum  of  money  to  be  raised  from 
the  sale  of  such  portion  of  said  lands,  or  until  a  section  of 
at  least  fifty  miles  of  said  road,  adjacent  to  said  lands,  shall 
have  been  completed — when  the  lands  on  said  section  will 
be  sold — and  so  on  till  the  said  road  and  branches  shall  be 
•complete. 

Fifth.  For  the  purpose  of  raising  funds  from  time  to 
time,  for  the  construction  and  completion  of  said  road  and 
branches,  and  the  purchase  of  iron  and  other  materials,  to 
be  used  thereon,  said  company  may  issue  its  bonds,  counter- 
signed by  the  said  trustees,  in  sums  of  not  less  than  five 
hundred,  nor  more  than  one  thousand  dollars  each,  at  rates 
of  interest  not  higher  than  seven  per  cent,  per  annum,  pay- 
able semi-annually  ;  the  principal  of  said  bonds  payable  in 
the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventy-five,  or 
sooner,  at  the  pleasure  of  the  Company,  at  such  place  as  it 
shall  designate.  The  payment  of  said  bonds  shall  be  secur- 
ed by  the  deed  of  trust  aforesaid,  of  said  lands,  roads  and 
materials,  as  hereinbefore  provided;  subject,  nevertheless, 
to  the  prior  lien  of  the  State  upon  said  lands  and  property 
hereinbefore  provided  for ;  which  said  prior  lien  shall  be 
referred  to  and  recited  in  said  bonds  so  to  be  issued  by  said 
company  :  Provided,  that  the  faith  of  the  State  is  in  nowise 
pledged  for  the  redemption  of  said  bonds  to  any  extent. 


20 

SEC.  16.  When  the  said  company  shall  have  completed 
and  put  in  running  order  fifty  miles  of  said  road,  the  said 
trustees,  on  the  requisition  of  said  company,  may  proceed  to 
sell  the  lands  lying  along  and  adjacent  to  such  section  so 
completed,  (and  not  reserved  free  from  all  iucumbrance  as 
aforesaid,)  in  such  manner  as  the  company  may  direct.  Said 
lands  shall  be  sold  for  cash  in  hand,  or  the  bonds  of  said 
company  at  par.  All  bonds  received  on  such  sales  shall  be 
cancelled  by  said  trustees  and  delivered  to  said  company. 
The  trustees  shall  invest  all  monies  received  on  such  sales 
in  the  bonds  of  the  company,  which  shall  be,  in  like  man- 
ner, cancelled  and  returned.  On  cancelling  said  bonds,  and 
before  returning  them  to  the  company,  said  trustees  shall 
make  a  brief  memorandum  on  each  bond,  specifying  for  or 
on  what  particular  tract  or  tracts  of  land  the  same  was  re- 
ceived. On  making  such  sales  and  receiving  the  price  of 
such  lands  in  money  or  bonds  as  aforesaid,  said  trustees 
shall  convey  such  tracts,  by  an  absolute  title,  in  fee  yimplfy 
to  the  purchasers  ;  which  conveyance  shall  operate  as  a  re- 
lease or  an  acquittance  of  the  particular  tract  or  tracts  so 
sold,  from  all  liability  or  incumbrance  on  account  of  said  deed 
of  trust  and  the  issue  of  said  bonds,  so  specified  in  the  pre- 
ceding section,  so  as  to  vest  in  the  purchasers  a  complete 
and  indefeasable  title.  Before  any  sales  shall  be  made  of 
any  of  said  lands,  the  said  trustees  shall  make  a  complete 
record,  describing  each  and  every  tract  of  land  selected  un- 
der said  Act  of  Congress,  a  copy  of  which  record  shall  be 
filed  in  the  office  of  the  Auditor  of  this  State,  and  as  sales 
of  land  are  made,  as  provided  herein,  from  time  to  time,  the 
said  trustees  shall  make  and  keep  a  record  as  aforesaid  of 
every  and  each  tract  of  land  so  sold,  together  with  the  name 
of  the  person  to  whom,  and  the  price  for  which  the  same 
was  sold.  A  copy  of  which  record  of  sales  shall  be  filed  in 
said  Auditor's  oflice,  semi-annually. 

SEC.  17.  The  trustees  shall  not  at  any  time  during  the 
construction  of  said  road  and  branches,  sell  or  dispose  of 
lands  to  an  amount  exceeding  the  sum  which  shall  then  have 
actually  been  expended  upon  the  said  work,  but  may,  at  the 
request  of  the  company,  sell  as  the  work  progresses,  so  as 


21 

to  meet  expenditures  actually'made  on  the  sections  of  road 
completed,  as  far  as  the  receipts  from  said  sales  may  go 
towards  their  liquidation.  And  all  lands  remaining  unsold 
at  the  expiration  of  ten  years  after  the  completion  of  said 
road  and  branches,  shall  be  offered  at  public  sale,  annually, 
until  the  whole  is  disposed  of,  and  the  avails  applied  to  the 
payment  of  the  outstanding  bonds  of  the  company  as  afore- 
said ;  or,  if  no  such  bonds  be  outstanding,  said  avails  shall 
be  paid  to  said  Company. 

SEC.  18.  In  consideration  of  the  grants,  privileges  and 
franchises  herein  conferred  upon  said  Company,  for  the  pur- 
poses aforesaid,  the  said  Company  shall,  on  the  first  Mon- 
days of  December  and  June,  in  each  year,  pay  into  the 
Treasury  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  five  per  centum  on  the 
gross  or  total  proceeds,  or  receipts,  or  income  derived  from 
said  road  and  branches,  for  the  six  months  then  next  pre- 
ceding. The  first  payment  of  such  per  centage  on  the  main 
trunk  of  said  road  to  commence  four  years  from  the  date  of 
said  deed  of  trust,  and  on  the  branches,  six  years  from  the 
date  aforesaid,  unless  said  road  and  branches  are  sooner 
completed,  then  from  the  date  of  completion.  And  for  the 
purpose  of  ascertaining  the  proceeds,  receipts  or  income 
aforesaid,  an  accurate  account  shall  be  kept  by  said  Com- 
pany, a  copy  whereof  shall  be  furnished  to  the  Governor  of 
the  State  of  Illinois  ;  the  truth  of  which  account  shall  be 
verified  by  the  affidavits  of  the  Treasurer  and  Secretary  of 
such  Company.  And  for  the  purpose  of  verifying  and  as- 
certaining the  accuracy  of  such  account,  full  power  is  here- 
by vested  in  the  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  or  any 
other  person  by  law  appointed,  to  examine  the  books  and 
papers  of  said  corporation,  and  to  examine,  under  oath,  the 
officers,  agents  and  employees  of  said  Company,  and  other 
persons.  And  if  any  person  so  examined  by  the  Governor, 
or  other  authority,  shall  knowingly  and  wilfully,  swear  false- 
ly, or  if  the  officers  making  such  affidavits,  shall,  knowingly 
and  wilfully,  swear  falsely,  every  such  person  shall  be  sub- 
ject to  the  pains  and  penalties  of  perjury. 

SEC.  19.  The  selection  of  lands  provided  for  in  the  Act 

of  Congress,  making  the  grant  hereinbefore  specified,  shall 

3 


22 

be  made  by  said  Company,  or  such  agents  as  it  may  desig- 
nate, under  the  appointment  of  the  Governor  of  this  State, 
subject  to  the  approval  in  said  Act  specified.  Said  selec- 
tion, as  well  as  the  survey,  location  and  completion  of  said 
road  and  branches,  and  the  compensation  of  such  trustees, 
shall  be  at  the  cost  and  charge  of  said  Company,  -without 
charge  of  any  kind  upon  the  Treasury  of  the  State  of 
Illinois.  Said  road  and  branches  to  be  free  for  the  use  of 
the  United  States,  and  to  be  employed  by  the  post  office 
department  as  provided  in  said  Act  of  Congress. 

SEC.  20.  In  case  of  the  death,  resignation,  removal,  or  in- 
ability to  act,  of  either  or  all  of  said  Trustees,  the  vacancy 
or  vacancies  shall  be  filled  by  the  Governor  of  the  State  of 
Illinois,  and  said  Company  alternately  ;  the  Governor  filling 
the  first  vacancy  that  may  occur. 

SEC.  21.  The  corporate  authorities  of  any  city  or  cities  on 
the  line  of  said  road  or  branches,  or  at  either  terminus  there- 
of, or  any  owner  or  owners  of  property  in  any  such  city,  or 
any  association  of  citizens,  duly  authorized  by  any  such  cor- 
poration, shall  have  power  to  lay  down  or  construct  a  track 
or  Railroad,  along  any  of  the  streets  of  any  such  cities,  for 
the  purpose  of  conveying  property  to  and  from  said  Rail- 
road, which  may  be  consigned  to  any  of  the  warehousemen, 
in  any  of  said  cities,  that  said  track  or  Railroad  (under  the 
direction  of  said  Company,)  may  intersect  the  track  of  said 
Railroad  Company  at  or  near  the  main  depot,  in  said  cities, 
respectively  ;  and  said  Company  shall,  at  all  times,  permit 
the  owners  or  consignees  of  property  in  such  cities,  to  take 
the  cars  containing  the  property  to  them  consigned,  to  their 
respective  warehouses  upon  said  track  :  Provided,  That  any 
car  so  taken  shall  be  returned  without  any,  unnecessary 
delay:  And  provided  further,  That  whenever  it  shall  be 
necessary,  for  the  convenience  of  the  public,  or  persons  receiv- 
ing or  sending  property  by  said  Railroad,  the  said  company 
shall  permit  side  tracks  to  intersect  their  main  road  at  any 
depot  on  or  along  the  line  of  said  road ;  and  that  such  per- 
sons shall  be  entitled  to  have  any  property  taken  from  such 
side  tracks,  under  the  directions  and  regulations  of  said 
company,  without  unreasonable  delay ;  and  for  the  non- 


23 

performance  by  said  company,  of  any  act  of  this  proviso 
required  to  be  done,  said  company  shall  forfeit  and  pay  to 
the  party  aggrieved  the  sum  of  fifty  dollars,  in  each  case  ; 
to  be  recovered  in  an  action  of  debt,  before  any  Justice  of 
the  Peace,  or  any  Court  having  jurisdiction  thereof. 

SEC.  22.  The  lands  selected  under  said  Act  of  Congress, 
and  hereby  authorized  to  be  conveyed,  shall  be  exempt  from 
all  taxation  under  the  laws  of  this  State,  until  sold  or  con- 
veyed by  said  corporation  or  trustees,  and  the  other  stock, 
property  and  effects  of  said  company  shall  be  in  like  man- 
ner exempt  from  taxation  for  the  term  of  six  years  from  the 
passage  of  this  Act.  After  the  expiration  of  said  six  years, 
the  stock,  property  and  assets  belonging  to  said  company 
shall  be  listed  by  the  president,  secretary  or  other  proper 
officer,  with  the  Auditor  of  State,  and  an  annual  tax  for 
State  purposes  shall  be  assessed  by  the  Auditor,  upon  all 
the  property  and  assets  of  every  name,  kind  and  description 
belonging  to  said  corporation.  Whenever  the  taxes  levied 
for  State  purposes  shall  exceed  three-fourths  of  one  per 
centum  per  annum,  such  excess  shall  be  deducted  from  the 
gross  proceeds  or  income  herein  required  to  be  paid  by  said 
corporation  to  the  State,  and  the  said  corporation  is  hereby 
exempted  from  all  taxation,  of  every  kind,  except  as  herein 
provided  for.  The  revenue  arising  from  said  taxation,  and 
the  said  five  per  cent,  of  gross  or  total  proceeds,  receipts  or 
income  aforesaid,  shall  be  paid  into  the  State  Treasury,  in 
money,  and  applied  to  the  payment  of  interest,  paying  State 
indebtedness,  until  the  extinction  thereof:  Provided,  in  case 
the  five  per  cent,  provided  to  be  paid  into  the  State  Trea- 
sury, and  the  State  taxes  to  be  paid  by  the  corporation,  do 
not  amount  to  seven  percent,  of  the  gross  or  total  proceeds, 
receipts  or  income,  then  the  said  Company  shall  pay  into 
the  State  Treasury  the  difference,  so  as  to  make  the  whole 
amount  paid  equal  at  least  to  seven  per  cent,  of  the  gross 
receipts  of  said  corporation, 

SEC.  23.  This  Act,  and  all  grants  herein  contained,  shall 
cease  and  be  void,  unless  accepted  by  said  Company  within 
sixty  days  after  the  passage  of  this  Act ;  and  immediately 
on  such  acceptance,  made  in  the  manner  above  provided,  the 


24 

deed  in  fee  simple,  and  the  deed  of  trust  aforesaid  shall  be 
made  as  above  provided.  All  the  grants  herein  contained 
shall  cease  and  be  void,  unless  said  road  and  branches  be 
surveyed  and  located,  and  work  on  the  main  trunk  actually 
begun,  before  the  first  day  of  January,  1852. 

SEC.  24.  The  State  shall  have  a  prior  lien  upon  said  road 
and  branches,  and  all  the  appurtenances  and  stock  thereof, 
for  all  penalties,  taxes  and  dues  which  may  accrue  to  the 
State  from  said  corporation,  as  herein  provided  ;  which  lien 
of  the  State  shall  take  precedence  of  all  demands,  judgments 
or  deecres  against  said  corporation. 

SEC.  25.  That  each  and  every  person  who,  on  the 
twentieth  day  of  September,  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  fifty,  was  the  owner  of  any  improvements  made  previ- 
ous to  that  date,  or  any  lot  of  land  conveyed  to  the  said 
Company,  and  who  became  such  owner  with  a  view  to  a 
residence  on,  or  occupation  of  such  lot  of  land  for  agricultural 
purposes,  shall  have  the  right  to  purchase,  at  not  exceeding 
two  dollars  and  fifty  cents  per  acre,  a  quantity  of  the  lot  so 
owned,  to  be  bounded  by  the  legal  subdivisions,  not  exceed- 
ing one-quarter  section,  to  consist  of  the  quarter  quarter, 
half- quarter,  or  quarter  section,  which  will  include  the 
improvement  aforesaid  :  Provided,  That  any  person  claim- 
ing the  right  to  purchase  under  the  provisions  of  this 
Act,  shall,  within  three  months  from  the  date  of  selecting 
the  lands,  file  in  the  Clerk's  office  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  the 
County  in  which  the  land  claimed  is  situated,  a  notice  to 
the  said  trustees  and  corporation,  of  his,  her,  or  their  claims, 
describing  the  land  by  its  numbers,  accompanied  with  an 
affidavit,  stating  the  date  and  object  of  the  improvement, 
the  time  and  manner,  when  and  how  he,  she,  or  they  be- 
came the  owner  thereof,  and  also  the  affidavits  of  at  least 
two  residents  of  the  County,  proving  the  facts  in  relation 
to  such  claim  :  And  provided  further,  That  the  right  of 
way  upon  and  across  any  lot  of  land  sold  under  the  provis- 
ions of  this  section,  not  exceeding  two  hundred  feet  in  width, 
shall  be  reserved  and  retained  for  the  passage  of  the  road, 
as  the  same  may  be  located  and  constructed,  and  any  per- 
son claiming  the  right  to  purchase  as  aforesaid,  shall  within 


25 

t welve  months  from  the  date  of  commencing  the  work  on  the 
road  within  the  county  in  which  the  land  is  situated,  pay 
the  said  Trustees  or  the  corporation,  the  consideration 
money  for  the  land  claimed  ;  which  payment  shall  entitle 
him,  her,  or  them,  to  a  deed  conveying  an  estate  in  fee ;  but 
in  case  of  failure  to  make  such  payment  the  right  to  make 
the  purchase  shall  cease.  When  two  or  more  persons  claim 
the  right  to  purchase  the  same  lot  of  land,  and  file  the  proof 
of  ownership  as  herein  required,  the  person  proving  the  first 
residence  by  himself,  or  those  under  whom  he  claims  the 
improvement,  shall  have  the  right  to  make  the  purchase, 
but  no  sale  or  conveyance  of  any  lot  of  land  under  the  pro- 
visions of  this  section,  shall  affect  the  rights  or  equities  of 
parties  claiming  the  same,  as  between  each  other. 

SEC.  26.  In  case  the  person  incorporated  by  this  Act  shall: 
fail  or  neglect  to  accept  the  provisions  of  the  same,  and  com- 
ply with  its  conditions  within  the  time,  and  in  the  manner 
herein  prescribed,  then  the  same  may  be  accepted  by  any 
other  Company,  which  shall  be  approved  of  by  the  Governor, 
Auditor  and  Treasurer  of  this  State,  who,  upon  complying 
with  the  terms  and  conditions  of  this  Act,  shall  be  vested 
with  all  the  rights,  powers  and  immunities,  conferred  upon 
the  corporators  herein  named,  and  shall  be  subject  to  all 
the  liabilities  in  the  said  Act  set  forth,  in  as  full,  ample  and 
complete  a  manner,  as  if  their  names  were  inserted  as 
corporators  in  this  Act. 

SEC.  27.  This  Act  shall  be  deemed  a  Public  Act,  and 
shall  be  favorably  construed  for  all  purposes  therein  ex- 
pressed, and  declared  in  all  Courts  and  places  whatsoever, 
and  shall  be  in  force  from  and  after  its  passage. 

SIDNEY  BREEZE, 
Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives. 
WILLIAM  McMURTNEY, 

Speaker  of  the  Senate. 
Approved,  February  10,  1851. 
AUG.  C.  FRENCH. 

Certificate  of  Act,  with  Seal  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  by 

DAVID  L.  GREGG, 
Secretary  of  State. 


26 


To  His  EXCELLENCY,  AUGUSTUS  C.  FRENCH, 

Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois  •: 

The  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  KAILROAD  COMPANY  hereby  certify  and 
and  declare,  that  they  have  accepted,  and  do  hereby  accept  the  Act 
of  Incorporation  of  said  Company,  entitled  "  An  Act  to  incorpo- 
rate the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD  COMPANY,"  passed  and  ap- 
proved on  the  tenth  day  of  February,  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  fifty -one.  And  this  certificate  is  presented  in  compliance  with 
the  requirements  of  said  Act,  and  particularly  of  the  twenty -third 
section  thereof. 

IN  WITNESS  WHEREOF,  and  in  pursuance  of  a  reso- 
lution of  the  Board  of  Directors,  passed  on  the 
nineteenth  day  of  March,  one  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  fifty -one,  the  said  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL 
[  L.  S.  ]  RAILROAD  COMPANY  have  caused  their  corporate 
seal  to  be  hereto  affixed,  and  the  names  of  their 
President  and  Secretary  to  be  signed  to  this  cer- 
tificate, this  twenty-second  day  of  March,  one 
thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-one. 

ROBERT  SCHUYLER, 

President  Illinois  Central  Rail  Road  Company. 

S.  ALOFSEN, 
Secretary  Illinois  Central  Rail  Road  Company. 


27 


EXECUTIVE  DEPARTMENT,    j 

SPRINGFIELD,  ILLINOIS,  APRIL  4,  1851.    ) 

DEAR  SIR, 

I  have  the  honor  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  the  acceptance 
of  the  Act  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  to  incorporate 
the  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY,  by  the  Company,  as  required 
by  the  Twenty-third  Section  of  said  Act. 

Very  Respectfully,  yours, 

AUG.  C.  FRENCH. 


®0tt(fCW  that  I  have  this  twenty -fourth  day  of  March, 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-one,  received  from  the 
ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY  two  hundred  thousand 
dollars,  in  specie,  which  sum  is  to  be  safely  kept  in  the  Treasury 
of  the  State  of  Illinois,  upon  the  faith  of  the  State,  and  to  be 
returned  to,  or  paid  over  to  the  said  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD 
COMPANY,  upon  the  full  completion  and  operation  of  fifty  miles  of 
the  Rail  Road,  to  be  constructed  by  said  Corporation,  according  to 
the  provisions  of  their  charter. 

(Signed  in  triplicate,)      JOHN  MOORE, 

Treasurer  of  Illinois. 


28 


DEED 

GOVERNOR  OF  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS  TO  ILLINOIS 
CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY. 


Xttttftttttte,  made  this  twenty-fourth  day  of  March,  in 
the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-one, 
BETWEEN  AUGUSTUS  C.  FRENCH,  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois, 
of  the  first  part,  and  the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY, 
of  the  second  part,  WITNESSETH  :  &2£U)C£C3S,  the  Congress  of 
the  United  States  of  America,  on  the  twentieth  day  of  September, 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty,  passed  An  Act  entitled  "  AN 
ACT  granting  the  Right  of  Way,  and  making  a  Grant  of  Land  to 
the  States  of  Illinois,  Mississippi,  and  Alabama,  in  aid  of  the  con- 
struction of  a  Rail  Road  from  Chicago  to  Mobile,"  which  Act  is  in 
the  words  and  figures  following,  to  wit  : 

(As  heretofore  on  page  5.) 

&Htt  SaifjereaS,  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  on 
the  tenth  day  of  February,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  one  fifty- 
one,  passed  An  Act  entitled  "  AN  ACT  to  incorporate  the  ILLINOIS 
CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY,"  which  Act  is  in  the  words  and 
figures  following,  to  wit  ; 

(As  heretofore  on  page  8.) 

Slntf  ®3Ef)  C£0aS,  the  Corporators  mentioned  in  the  first 
Section  of  said  Act  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  on  the 
[19th]  day  of  March,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-one, 
agreed  to  accept  the  Act  of  Incorporation  hereinbefore  set  forth, 
and  have  on  the  same  day  presented  to  the  Governor  of  the  State 
of  Illinois,  a  Certificate  signed  by  said  Corporators,  and  duly 
acknowledged,  accepting  of  said  Act  of  incorporation,  and  certifying 
to  the  due  organization  of  said  Corporation,  and  that  they  had 
elected  ROBERT  SCHUYLER  as  their  President,  and  SOLOMON 
ALOFSEN  as  their  Secretary,  and  EDWARD  BEMENT  as  their 
Treasurer,  and  said  Certificate  further  (£0tt(ft0S,  that  a  subscrip- 
tion to  the  Capital  Stock  of  said  Company  by  the  Corporators 
named  in  said  Act,  and  their  Associates,  had  been  duly  made  in 
the  sum  of  One  Million  of  Dollars,  and  that  Twenty  per  cent- 
thereon  had  been  bona  fide  paid  to  the  Treasurer  of  said  Company, 


29 

SSJfjCtfflfl,  Two  Hundred  Thousand  Dollars  in  specie 
has  been  by  said  Corporation  deposited  with  the  Treasurer  of  the 
State  of  Illinois,  which  appears  by  a  Duplicate  Receipt,  signed  by 
said  Treasurer. 

ST-UtT  £3Bf)CrcaS,  on  the  day  and  year  first  above  mentioned, 
and  simultaneously  with  the  delivery  hereof,  a  Deed  of  Trust  by 
the  said  The  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY  is  executed 
and  delivered  to  MORRIS  KETCHUM,  JOHN  MOORE  and  SAMUEL  D. 
LOCKWOOD,  for  the  uses  and  purposes  therein  expressed,  which  Deed 
of  Trust  is  in  the  words  and  figures  following,  to  wit : 
(As  on  page  30.) 

jC^Toid,  in  consideration  of  the  premises  above  recited  and  to 
carry  into  effect  the  Act  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois 
aforesaid,    STfjtS  Kn&enttttf  totttteflStt!)  t    That  the  said 
Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  in  pursuance  of  the  authority  in 
him  vested  by  the  Statute  last  aforesaid,  and  for  the  purpose  of 
securing  the  construction  of  said  Rail  Road  and  Branches,  HATS 
granted,  bargained  and  sold,  and  by  these  presents  DOTH  grant, 
bargain  and  sell  to  the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY, 
$HU  the  lands  granted  by  the  Government  of  the  United  States, 
under  the  Act  of  Congress  aforesaid,  to  the  State  of  Illinois ;  ALSO, 
the  lot  of  ground  obtained  by  the  State  of  Illinois  within  the  City 
of  Cairo  for  a  Depot :  ALSO,  the  Right  of  Way,  Grading,  Embank- 
ments, Excavations,  Survey,  Work,  Materials,  Profiles,  Plats  and 
Papers  described  in  said  Act  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of 
Illinois,  or  in  anywise  appertaining  to  said  Railroad  and  Branches- 
To  HAVE  AND  TO  HOLD,  in  fee  simple,  all  and  singular  the  above 
granted  and  described  premises,  with  the  appurtenances  thereunto 
belonging  to  the  said  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY,  and 
to  their  successors  forever,  to  the  uses  and  for  the  purposes  men- 
tioned in  the  said  Act  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois. 

Xtt  fcnesttmong  toJjeteof,  the  said  AUGUSTUS 
C.  FRENCH,  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  and 
in  his  official  capacity  as  Governor  as  aforesaid, 
[  L.  S.  j  hath  hereunto  subscribed  his  name  and  caused  the 
Great  Seal  of  the  State  of  Illinois  to  be  hereunto 
affixed,  the  day  and  year  first  above  written. 

(Signed,)         AUGUSTUS  C.  FRENCH. 


30 


ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY  TO 

MORRIS  KETCHUM,  JOHN  MOORE,  AND 

SAMUEL  D.  LOCK  WOOD. 


Kttftntttttf,  made  this  twenty-fourth  day  of  March, 
in  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-one,  BETWEEN 
THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY  of  the  first  part, 
and  MORRIS  KETCHUM,  of  the  City  of  New-  York,  JOHN  MOORE 
and  SAMUEL  D.  LOCKWOOD,  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  Trustees  of  the 
second  part,  WITNESSETH  :  S2Hf)0t!£3S,  the  Governor  of  the  State 
of  Illinois,  hath,  on  the  day  of  the  date  of  these  presents,  executed 
a  Deed,  in  fee  simple,  to  the  "  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COM- 
PANY," of  all  the  lands  granted  by  the  Government  of  the  United 
States,  under  an  Act  of  Congress,  approved  the  20th  September, 
1850,  entitled  "  An  Act  granting  the  Right  of  Way,  and  making  a 
grant  of  land  to  the  States  of  Illinois,  Mississippi  and  Alabama,  in 
aid  of  the  construction  of  a  Rail  Road  from  Chicago  to  Mobile,"  to 
the  State  of  Illinois,  said  Deed  also  conveys  to  the  said  ILLINOIS 
CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY  the  Lot  of  ground,  obtained  by  the 
State  of  Illinois,  within  the  City  of  Cairo,  for  a  Depot,  also  the 
right  of  Way,  Grading,  Embankments,  Excavations,  Surveys,  Work, 
Materials,  Profiles,  Plats  and  Papers  described  in  the  said  Act  of 
the  Legislature,  or  in  anywise  appertaining  to  said  Rail  Road  and 
Branches. 

&tttt  tTJUJfjCrcaS,  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  by 
an  Act  passed  the  10th  day  of  February,  1851,  entitled  "  An  Act 
to  incorporate  the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY," 
require  that  said  Company  shall,  in  addition  to  every  thing  includ- 
ed and  conveyed  in  and  by  said  Deed  in  fee  simple,  convey  to 
the  said  Trustees,  the  Rail  Road  or  Rail  Roads,  which  may  be  built 
upon  or  along  said  Track  or  Tracks,  line  or  lines,  and  materials  for 
the  construction  thereof,  with  all  and  singular  the  Buildings,  Shops, 
Engine  Houses,  Turn-outs,  Stations  and  Real  Estate  of  every 
nature  and  description,  belonging  or  to  belong  to,  or  in  anywise  ap- 
pertaining or  to  appertain  to  said  Road  and  Branches.  Now  IN 
CONSIDERATION  of  the  premises  above  recited,  and  fully  to  comply 


31 

the  requisitions  of  the  Act  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of 
Illinois,  recited  and  copied  into  said  Deed  executed  by  the  Governor 
of  the  State  of  Illinois,  to  the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD 
COMPANY,  and  in  consideration  of  the  sum  of  One  Dollar  paid  by 
the  said  MORRIS  KETCHUM,  JOHN  MOORE  and  SAMUEL  D.  LOCK- 
WOOD,  to  the  said  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY,  the 
receipt  whereof  is  hereby  acknowledged.  THIS  INDENTURE 
WITNESSETH,  That  the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY, 
Hath  granted,  bargained  and  sold,  and  by  these  presents,  do  grant, 
bargain  and  sell  to  the  said  MORRIS  KETCHUM,  JOHN  MOORE  and 
SAMUEL  D.  LOCKWOOD,  all  the  lands  granted  by  the  Government 
of  the  United  States,  under  the  Act  of  Congress  referred  to  and 
copied  in  said  Deed.  Also  the  Lot  of  ground  obtained  by  the  State 
of  Illinois,  within  the  City  of  Cairo,  for  a  Depot.  Also  the  right 
of  Way,  Grading,  Embankments,  Excavations,  Surveys,  Work, 
Materials,  Profiles,  Plats  and  Papers,  described  in  the  Act  of  the 
Legislature  of  Illinois,  or  in  anywise  appertaining  to  the  Illinois 
Central  Rail  Road  and  Branches,  and  also  the  Rail  Road  or  Rail 
Roads  which  may  be  built  upon  or  along  said  Track  or  Tracks,  line 
or  lines  and  materials,  for  the  construction  thereof,  with  all  and  sin- 
gular the  Buildings,  Shops,  Engine  Houses,  Turn-outs,  Stations 
and  Real  Estate  of  every  nature  and  description,  belonging  to  or  to 
belong  to,  or  in  anywise  appertaining  to  said  Road  and  Branches, 
for  the  uses  and  purposes  directed  in  said  Act  of  Incorporation,  in 
the  words  following,  that  is  to  say  : 

"  FIRST.  To  secure  and  guarantee  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  the 
first  and  prior  lien  on  every  thing  conveyed  by  said  Deed  of  Trust, 
of  every  name,  character  and  description  for  security,  as  follows  :" 

Firstly.  The  Constructing,  Completing  and  Furnishing  said 
Road  and  Branches,  in  the  manner  and  time  and  upon  conditions 
in  this  Act,  provided.  Secondly.  For  the  faithful  application  of 
:all  money  or  property  arising  from  the  sale  of  lands,  or  obtained 
upon  the  faith  of  the  same,  as  hereafter  authorized,  to  the  construc- 
ting, completing,  equiping  and  furnishing  said  Road  and  Branches, 
in  accordance  with  the  terms  of  this  Act  and  said  Act  of  Congress. 
Thirdly.  The  indemnification  of  the  State  of  Illinois  against  all 
and  every  claim  of  the  United  States  Government,  for  proceeds  of 
sale  of  lands  made  by  said  Company,  under  the  provisions  of  this 
Act,  in  the  event  said  Road  and  Branches  shall  not  be  completed  as 
required  by  the  Act  of  Congress  above  referred  to.  Fourthly, 
'The  lien  hereby  created  shall  take  and  have  precedence  of  all 


32 

demands,  incumbrances,  mortgages,  bonds,  judgments  and  decrees, 
against  said  Corporation  or  said  property,  except  so  far  as  the  abso- 
lute Power  of  selling  said  lands,  or  any  portion  thereof,  as  is  herein 
provided  for:  ^pVOtUtTCtt,  That  in  case  Fifty  miles  of  the  said 
Road  shall  not  be  constructed,  according  to  the  provisions  of  this 
Act,  within  two  years,  from  and  after  the  date  of  the  organization 
of  the  Company,  under  the  same,  the  Bonds  or  money  herein  pro- 
Tided  to  be  deposited  with  the  Treasurer  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  shall 
become  forfeited  to  and  become  the  property  of  the  said  State, 
subject  to  the  disposition  of  the  Legislature  thereof. 

SECOND.  That  on  its  organization,  said  Company  may  enter  upon, 
take  and  receive  possession  of  the  said  Tracks  or  Lines,  for  the  pur* 
pose  of  surveying,  locating,  working  and  constructing  said  Road  and 
Branches,  with  the  Right  of  Way,  Land,  Grading,  Embankments, 
Excavations,  Surveys,  Work,  Materials,  Property,  Profiles,  Plats 
and  Papers  aforesaid,  to  be  occupied,  used  and  employed  for  the 
purposes  contemplated  by  this  Act,  under  whosesoever  control  the 
same  may  be. 

THIRD.  That  said  Company  shall  proceed  to  locate,  survey  and 
lay  out,  construct  and  complete  said  Road  and  Branches,  through 
the  entire  length  thereof ;  the  Main  Trunk  thereof,  or  Central  Line, 
to  run  from  the  CITY  OF  CAIRO  to  the  Southern  termination  of  the 
ILLINOIS  AND  MICHIGAN  CANAL,  passing  not  more  than  five  miles 
from  the  Northeast  corner  of  Township  Twenty-one  North,  Range 
Two  East  of  the  Third  Principal  Meridian,  and  nowhere  departing 
more  than  seventeen  miles  from  a  straight  line  between  said  City  of 
Cairo  and  said  Southern  termination  of  said  Canal,  with  a  Branch 
running  from  the  last  mentioned  point,  upon  the  most  eligible  route 
to  the  City  of  Galena  ;  thence  to  a  point  on  the  Mississippi  River, 
opposite  the  City  of  Dubuque,  in  the  State  of  Iowa  ;  with  a  Branch 
also  diverging  from  the  Main  Track  at  a  point  not  North  of  the 
parallel  of  thirty -nine  and  a  half  degrees  North  latitude,  and  run- 
ning on  the  most  eligible  route  into  the  City  of  Chicago,  on  Lake 
Michigan,  That  the  Central  Road  or  Main  Track  shall  be  com- 
pleted, with  at  least  one  line  of  Rails,  or  single  Track,  with  the 
necessary  Turn-outs,  Stations,  Equipments  and  Furnishings,  within 
four  years  from  the  date  of  the  execution  of  said  Deed  of  Trust,  and 
the  Branches  within  six  years  from  the  said  date  ;  said  Roads  to  be 
made  equal,  in  all  respects,  to  the  Road  leading  from  Boston  to 
Albany,  usually  known  as  the  Great  Western  Railway,  with  such 


improvements  as  experience  shall  have  shown  to  be  expedient ;  th& 
central  or  Main  line  to  be  first  commenced,  and  to  be  continued  to 
completion. 

FOURTH.  A  portion  of  said  lands,  so  conveyed  to  said  Trustees, 
not  exceeding  one-fourth  part  thereof  in  value,  to  be  designated  by 
said  Company,  shall  be  held  by  said  Trustees  free  from  all  incum- 
brances  for  purposes  of  sale,  from  time  to  time,  on  the  requisition 
of  said  Company  for  the  purpose  of  raising  Funds  for  the  payment 
of  Interest  on  Loans,  in  case  of  deficiency  from  other  sources,  and 
for  such  expenditures  as  the  exigencies  of  the  business  of  the  Com- 
pany may  require  :  J^rofotfrftf,  That  no  portion  of  said  fourth 
part  of  said  lands  shall  be  sold  until  said  Road  and  Branches  shall 
have  been  surveyed  and  located,  and  the  work  actually  commenced 
on  the  Main  Road :  Ptobftefc  fttttfjer,  That  no  portion  of 
said  lands  so  held  by  the  said  Trustees,  free  from  all  incumbrance 
for  said  purposes,  shall  be  sold  or  offered  for  sale,  until  the  said 
Trustees  shall  be  satisfied  that  a  sum  of  money  has  been  actually 
expended  upon  the  construction  of  a  Section,  of  at  least  fifty  miles 
of  said  Road,  adjacent  to  said  lands,  equal  in  amount  to  the  sum  of 
money  to  be  raised  from  the  sale  of  such  portion  of  said  lands,  or 
until  a  Section  of  at  least  Fifty  miles  of  said  Road,  adjacent  to  said 
lands,  shall  have  been  completed,  when  the  lands  on  said  Section 
will  be  sold — and  so  on  till  the  said  Road  and  Branches  shall  be 
completed. 

FIFTH.  For  the  purpose  of  raising  funds  from  time  to  time,  for 
the  construction  and  completion  of  said  Road  and  Branches,  and 
the  purchase  of  Iron  and  other  materials,  to  be  used  thereon,  said 
Company  may  issue  its  Bonds,  countersigned  by  the  said  Trustees, 
in  sums  of  not  less  than  Five  Hundred,  nor  more  than  One  Thou- 
sand Dollars  each,  at  rates  of  Interest  not  higher  than  SEVEN  per 
cent,  per  annum,  payable  semi-annually ;  the  Principal  of  said 
Bonds  payable  in  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  seventy- 
five,  or  sooner,  at  the  pleasure  of  the  Company,  at  such  place  as  it 
shall  designate.  The  payment  of  said  Bonds  shall  be  secured  by 
the  Deed  of  Trust  aforesaid,  of  said  lands,  Roads  and  Materials,  as 
hereinbefore  provided  for  ;  which  said  prior  lien  shall  be  referred 
to  and  recited  in  said  Bonds,  so  to  be  issued  by  said  Company  : 
3|tO&tttlft>  That  the  faith  of  the  State  is  in  no  wise  pledged  for 
the  redemption  of  said  Bonds  to  any  extent.  It  being  understood 
.and  agreed,  that  the  said  Company  shall  and  will  make,  execute  and 
deliver  to  the  said  Trustees,  such  proper  Deed,  Conveyance,  Decla- 


oration  of  Trusts,  or  other  Assurance,  as  shall  from  time  to  time  be 
necessary  and  proper,  and  as  their  Counsel,  learned  in  the  law, 
shall  reasonably  advise  for  the  better  carrying  into  effect  the  true 
object  of  this  Indenture,  and  of  securing  by  Mortgage,  the  payment 
of  each  and  all  of  said  Construction  Bonds,  in  the  manner  and  form 
in  said  additional  Instrument  to  be  fully  and  at  large  set  forth  and 
declared,  with  the  same  effect  and  certainty  as  if  the  provisions 
thereof  had  been  embodied  and  set  forth  in  this  Indenture  : 
iptrObttlltr  i)OU)Ct)CL%  That  nothing  in  said  additional  Instru- 
ment shall  in  anywise  affect  or  impair  the  prior  lien  of  the  State  of 
Illinois.  To  HAVE  AND  TO  HOLD  all  and  singular  the  above  granted 
and  described  premises,  with  the  appurtenances,  to  the  said  MORRIS 
KETCHUM,  JOHN  MOORE  and  SAMUEL  D.  LOCKWOOD,  Trustees  as 
aforesaid,  and  as  joint  tenants  and  not  tenants  in  common,  and  to 
their  successors,  until  all  the  uses  and  Trusts,  hereinbefore  set  forth 
.and  declared,  shall  be  fully  and  completely  accomplished,  and  the 
said  Trustees  shall  not,  in  any  manner,  be  liable  or  responsible  for 
;any  acts  of  each  other  to  which  they  do  not  severally  assent,  and 
rshall  be  accountable  only  for  the  exercise  of  reasonable  diligence  in 
,the  management  of  said  Trust. 

Kn  STesttmong  toijereof,  The  ILLINOIS 

CENTRAL   RAIL  ROAD   COMPANY   have   caused 
[  L.  S.  ]          their  Seal  to  be  hereunto  affixed,  and  the  Presi- 
dent and  Secretary  have  subscribed  their  names, 
the  day  and  year  first  above  written. 

ROBERT  SCHUYLER, 

President  of  Illinois  Central  Rail  Road  Company. 

S.  ALOFSEN, 
Secretary  of  the  Illinois  Central  Rail  Road  Company. 


35 


To  the  Directors  of  the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL-ROAD : 

The  organization  of  the  Company  being  now  complete,  by  the 
performance  of  all  the  requirements  of  the  Act  of  Incorporation, 
and  by  the  receipt  of  official  advice  from  the  Executive  of  Illinois, 
that  our  acceptance  of  the  Charter  had  been  filed  in  the  office  of  the 
Secretary  of  State  within  the  period  limited  for  that  purpose  ;  your 
attention  will  be  at  once  devoted  to  the  measures  necessary  for  the 
commencement  of  active  operations. 

The  first  duty  will  be  to  organize  the  Engineer  Corps  and  to  pre- 
pare such  general  instructions  as  you  may  deem  necessary  as  to  the 
Location  of  the  line.  On  the  main  line,  the  location  admits  of  a1 
departure  from  an  air  line  between  Cairo  and  Lasalle,  which  gives 
a  total  width  of  country  in  which  to  place  the  road,  of  35  miles. 
The  Branches  may  be  laid  without  local  restrictions.  The  whole 
location  may  thus  be  considered  as  within  your  control,  and  you  will 
only  be  guided  by  the  known  object  which  has  influenced  the  State 
in  confiding  this  great  work  to  your  care,  that  of  the  developement 
of  its  vast  agricultural  resources,  by  creating  an  easy  and  expedi- 
tious mode  of  reaching  fertile  lands  now  almost  neglected  by  settlers, 
and  of  sending  to  market  with  promptness  and  at  a  small  expense, 
the  produce  of  these  lands,  which  now  can  hardly  be  carried  away 
from  the  farm  upon  which  they  are  raised.  You  will  locate  your 
road  among  these  rich  agricultural  districts,  as  far  as  may  be  con- 
sistent with  the  best  interests  of  your  enterprise. 

The  characteristics  of  your  road  will  also  be  soon  established  in 
general  terms.  Your  policy  will  probably  be  to  obtain,  immedi- 
ately after  location,  the  right  of  way  of  200  feet  in  width,  except  in 
cases  where  circumstances  may  render  it  expedient  to  reduce  this 
width,  and  to  acquire  as  much  land  as  may  be  considered  ultimately 
necessary  for  the  business  of  the  road.  The  graduation,  masonry, 
&c.,  will  be  prepared  for  a  single  line  of  rails,  with  about  fifteen 
miles  in  every  hundred  of  sidelirigs  and  branch  tracks  ;  but  in  those 
parts  of  the  line  where  the  preparation  for  a  second  line  of  rails 
would  involve  the  stoppage  or  interruption  of  the  business  of  the  first 
line,  it  will  probably  be  prudent  to  embrace  the  work  in  the  present 
eonstruction.  The  rails  you  will  decide  to  select  of  some  known  formf 


36 

and  to  weigh  about  60  Ibs.  to  the  yard,  and  with  such  a 
superstructure  as  your  Engineer  may  consider  essential  to 
the  service  to  he  required  for  your  business. 

It  would  be  injudicious,  at  present,  to  submit  an  estimate 
of  the  probable  cost  of  the  whole  Road  and  Branches,  and 
your  attention  will  be  particularly  devoted  to  the  plans  to 
be  adopted  for  the  best  use  of  the  lands  and  properties 
which  have  been  given  to  the  Company  for  the  purposes 
proposed  by  the  grants.  To  retain  the  lands  in  your  actu- 
al possession  until  the  increase  of  population  caused  by  the 
facilities  created  by  the  Railroad  shall  have  given  to  them 
a  high  market  value,  seems  to  be  the  most  judicious  course, 
and,  therefore,  it  will  be  necessary,  to  avail  yourselves  of 
the  authority  given  by  the  charter,  to  build  the  Road  and 
Branches  by  the  proceeds  of  Bonds  to  be  issued  for  the 
construction  charges,  to  be  secured  in  the  most  perfect  man- 
ner in  your  power.  The  details  of  this  arrangement,  as  far 
as  it  has  been  matured,  are  now  submitted. 


37 


DONATED 


The  number  of  acres  of  land  granted  by  the  Act  of  Con- 
gress, depends  upon  the  length  of  the  Road  and  branches, 
but  the  quantity,  for  each  tnile  of  that  length,  •will  be 
3,840  acres,  being  equal  to  one- half  of  six  sections  of  640 
acres  each,  on  each  side  of  the  Road,  &c.  As  the  probable 
length  of  the  line,  located  to  meet  the  best  interests  of  the 
enterprise,  will  not  be  less  than  six  hundred  and  seventy 
miles  ;  the  total  number  of  acres  passing  under  the  act,  will 
not  be  less  than  two  millions  five  hundred  and  seventy-two 
thousand  eight  hundred  (2,572,800)  acres.  The  intention 
of  Congress  is  clearly  defined  in  the  Act,  and  it  may,  there- 
fore, be  safely  assumed,  that  the  State  will  receive  and  pass 
to  our  Company  not  less  than  the  number  of  acres  above 
named. 

The  following  appropriation  of  these  lands  is  proposed : 


3,OOO,OOO  acres.  TWO  MILLIONS  of  acres,  to  be 
mortgaged  as  security  for  the 
CONSTRUCTION  BONDS,  and 
to  be  retained  from  sale  until  the 
demand  for  lands  near  the  line  of 
the  Railroad  shall  create  a  price  at 
least  equal  to  the  minimum  valua- 
tion which  will  be  affixed  to  each 
class,  into  which  this  quantity  shall 
be  divided,  after  proper  exploration; 
and  surveys. 


38 

250,000  acres.  TWO  HUNDRED  and  FIFTY 
THOUSAND  acres,  and  the  pro- 
ceeds of  the  sales  thereof,  to  be 
appropriated  to  the  Interest  Fund 
— to  be  selected  by  the  Company 
with  reference  to  the  probability  of 
early  sales,  and  to  remain  with  the 
Trustees  free  from  incumbrance. 

322, SOO  acres.  THREE  HUNDRED  AND 
TWENTY-TWO  THOUSAND 
EIGHT  HUNDRED  acres,  or 
whatever  number  of  acres  may  re- 
main unappropriated,  to  remain 
with  the  Trustees,  free  from  ineum- 
brance,  to  be  sold  from  time  to  time 
by  the  Trustees,  upon  the  request 
of  the  Company,  and  at  prices  to- 
be  set  upon  the  lands  by  them,  to 
meet  such  demands  as  the  exigen- 
cies of  the  Company  may  demand 
— as  new  tracks,  sidelinga,  &c.7 
but  with  the  understanding,  that 
if  sold  and  applied  to  any  purpose 
for  which  provision  is  intended  to 
be  made  by  the  Construction 
Bonds,  that  this  temporary  appli- 
cation shall  be  replaced  by  the 
Construction  Bonds  as  soon-  as 
practicable. 

The  Two  Millions  of  acres  to  be  mortgaged  as  security 
for  the  Construction  Bonds,  are  to  be  divided  into  classes 
for  valuation.  The  object  and  purpose  of  this  classification 
will  be  shewn  in  stating  the  security  for  the  Principal 
of  the  Construction  Bonds.  The  number  of  acres  of  each 
class,  also,  can  only  be  definitely  determined  by  survey,  but 
the  following  estimate  of  these  several  qualities  can  proba- 
bly be  nearly  realized  by  careful  selections : 


39 

400,000  acres  are  classed  as  INFERIOR 
AGRICULTURAL  lands,  and  valued 
:at^$6  per  acre,  making,  -  -  $2,400,000 

1,200,000  acres,  classed  as  GOOD  AGRICUL- 
TURAL lands,  and  valued  at  $10 
per  acre,  -  -  12,000,000 

•300,000  acres  are  classed  as  SUPERIOR 
AGRICULTURAL  lands,  and  valued 
at  $15  per  acre,  making,  -  -  4,500,000 


100,000    acres  are  classed  a^ 

VALUABLE,  from  some  peculiarity 
of  location,  such  as  town  or  village 
sites,  coal  beds,  stone  quarries, 
minerals,  &c.,  and  are  valued  at 
an  average  of  $25  per  acre,  -  2,500,000 


2,000,000  acres,  forming  an  aggregate  valua- 
tion of,  $21,400,000 

This  it  will  be  remembered,  is  not  the  valuation  of  an 
-agricultural  district,  remote  from  market,  and  out  of  the 
line  of  emigration  and  settlement,  but  of  one  which  will  have 
been  for  years,  before  there  can  be  any  necessity  of  selling 
the  lands,  traversed  by  trains  of  freight  and  passenger  cars, 
leading  to  the  great  markets  of  the  South,  the  North  and 
the  East,  by  means  the  most  sure,  economical  and  expedi- 
tious, ^known  to  art  and  science.  a  No  one  in  the  least  fami- 
liar with  the  statistics  of  the ;  growth  of  our  Western 
Country,  will  probably  question  the^position  above  taken,  as 
to  the  market  value  to  be  realized  for  their  lands  at  some 
future  day,  in  advance  of  1875,  when  the  Construction 
Bonds  fall  due. 


Construction  Accounts  to  be  paid  from  the 
Construction  Bonds, 


1.  Charter  expenses  for  the  charges  connected  with 

curing  the  grants  of  land,  charter,  organization,  &c. 

9.  Expense  of  the  Company  for  salaries,  and  all  charges 
connected  with  the  maintainance  and  management 
of  all  its  corporate  powers,  inclusive  of  the  com- 
pensation to  the  Trustees  and  Solicitors  of  the 
Company. 

3.  Engineering  for  all  the  disbursements  and  charges  of 

this  department,  &c. 

4.  Bight  of  way,  damages,  costs,  counsel  fees,  compromises, 

&c. 

«5.  Graduation,  Masonry,  Iron,  Superstructure,  Carpenters' 
Work,  Station  Houses,  Engine  Houses,  Machine 
and  other  Shops,  "Water  Tanks  and  Aqueducts, 
Stores,  Warehouses,  and  all  works  connected  gen- 
erally with  building  and  equipping  the  Road  and 
appurtenances,  with  a  single  line  of  rails,  with  turn- 
outs and  sidelings,  and  double  tracks  equal  to  15 
miles  in  every  100  miles  in  length  of  the  road  and 
branches,  as  described  by  the  Engineer  in  general 
terms. 

6.  Equipment,  engines,  cars,  furniture,  and  all  charges  in 
this  department. 

"7«  Transportation  service  for  stock  and  materials,  wood, 
iron,  spikes,  timber,  oil,  waste,  <fcc.,  and  for  advan- 
ces for  charges  on  freight,  &c.,  say  two  hundred 
and  fifty  thousand  dollars. 


41 

j§.  Interest  for  all  warrants  payable  during  the  construc- 
tion, inclusive  of  the  semi-annual  payment  of  inter- 
est next  after  the  passage  of  an  engine  over  the 
whole  line  of  Road  and  branches,  and  for  such 
Dividends  of  Interest  on  the  Capital  Stock  as  the 
Directors  may  order  to  be  paid  during  the  con. 
struction. 


Construction  Bonds,  Tenor,  Interest,  Warrants,  Ac, 

These  Bonds  to  be  payable  on  the  first  day  of  April,  1875, 
and  to  bear  such  rate  of  interest  as  the  Directors  shall  order, 
from  time  to  time,  not  exceeding  seven  per  centum  per 
annum,  but  the  interest  warrants  of  all  the  bonds  to  be  paya- 
ble on  the  first  day  of  October  and  April  in  each  year,  until 
the  principal  be  paid — both  principal  and  interest  to  be 
payable  at  the  office  of  the  Company,  in  the  City  of  New- 
York,  unless  otherwise  provided  in  the  bond.  The  Company 
to  reserve  the  right  .to  purchase  their  Bonds  by  agreement, 
at  any  time,  with  the  holder,  and  may  require  any  holder 
to  deliver  or  surrender  the  Bond  or  Bonds  held  by  him,  by 
tender  or  payment  of  the  principal,  with  the  addition  of 
TWENTY  per  cent,  of  the  amount  thereof,  and  the  unpaid 
interest  upon  the  original  principal,  to  the  date  of  the  sur- 
render or  claim  therefor.  The  holder  of  any  Bond  or  Bonds 
may,  at  any  time,  use  the  same  for  the  purchase  of  any 
mortgaged  lands  which  may  be  open  for  sale  at  the  time,  at 
the' rate  or  price  named^for  the  lands  by  the  Company  or 
the  Trustees  ;  in  which  case,  the  Bonds  so^used,  shall  be 
cancelled  in  the  manner  prescribed  as  to  the  sale  of  lands, 
&,c.  A  register  shall  be  kept  at  the  office  of  the  Company, 
in  which  Bondholders  may  enter  Bonds  for  sale,  and  the 
Company  will  give  preference  in  the  purchase  of  Bonds  to 
those  entered  in  this  Register,  in  selecting  for  purchase. 


43 


CONSTRUCTION  BONDS. 

Security  for  the  Principal* 


The  Deed  of  Trust,  already  executed,  contains  some  gen- 
eral provisions  for  the  purpose  of  securing  these  Bonds.  It 
is  proposed  to  execute  a  further  declaratory  instrument  or' 
mortgage,  in  pursuance  of  a  provision  in  the  Deed  of  Trust, 
which  will  be  of  the  same  force  and  virtue  as  if  it  had  been 
part  of  the  original  Deed  of  Trust.  In  this  mortgage  will 
be  set  forth  all  the  special  provisions  and  appropriations, 
by  which  the  Company  propose  to  secure  most  perfectly' 
the  principal  and  interest  of  the  Bonds. 

The  Deed  of  Trust  and  the  addition  thereto,  will  create 
a  lien  in  favor  of  the  Construction  Bond  Holders,  upon  the 
following  properties : 

1 .  Upon  the  Railroad  and  Branches,  with  all  their  respec- 

tive appurtenances  of  every  kind  and  character,  em- 
braced within  the  term  "  Real  Estate,"  but  exclusive 
of  the  equipment  of  furniture,  motive  power  and  rolling 
stock. 

The  liability  of  this  property  will  continue  until  the 
actual  or  presumed  discharge  of  the  last  Construction 
Bond,  and  will  form  a  security,  always  increasing  in 
value  with  the  growth  of  the  country,  while  at  the 
same  time,  the  amount  of  the  Bonds  actually  charged 
upon  it,  will  be  as  constantly  decreasing  from  the  sale 
of  the  donated  lands. 

2,  Upon  not  less   than  two  million  of  seres  of  the  land 

granted  by  Congress  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  and  by 
the  State  of  Illinois  to  our  Company,  and  by  us  con- 
veyed to  Trustees  as  has  been  mentioned.  These  lands- 
are  all  within  fifteen  miles  of  the  Railroad,  and  of 
course  within  the  reach  of  its  facilities  of  transport*- 


44 

tion  ;  they  are  all  held  as  Patent  Titles,  free  from  any 
and  every  tax,  claim  or  shadow  of  title,  and  will  be  So  set 
forth  and  described  in  the  declaration  to  be  added  to  the 
Deed  of  Trust,  and  the  lists  and  schedules  thereto 
annexed,  as  to  preclude  all  uncertainties  of  location, 
description,  &c.,  &c. 

The  same  instrument  will  define  the  power  and  mode  in 
which  these  lands  may  be  sold  by  the  Trustees,  from  time 
to  time,  as  the  Company  shall  direct,  and  especially  will 
provision  be  made,  compelling  the  Trustees  to  receive  and 
cancel,  as  part  of  the  actual  consideration  of  each  Deed  or 
Sale,  a  Bond  or  Bonds  nearest  in  amount  to  the  true  amoun  t 
of  the  purchase  money  of  the  land  conveyed,  and  to  insert 
in  the  Deed  the  amount  of  cash  received  as  part  of  the 
consideration,  and  the  numbers  and  amounts  of  the  Bonds 
received  for  the  remaining  part  of  the  consideration,  and 
also  making  it  their  duty  to  cancel  these  Bonds  as  soon  as 
received,  and  to  note  upon  them,  respectively,  such  descrip- 
tion of  the  land  sold  and  conveyed  for  which  they  were 
received  in  payment  as  shall  enable  the  Company  at  all 
times  to  trace  and  follow  the  same.  It  will  also  be  made  their 
duty  to  invest  the  cash  received  from  sales,  with  all  reason- 
able diligence,  in  the  purchase  of  the  Construction  Bonds, 
and  to  cancel  the  same,  and  in  case  a  purchaser  of  land 
may  desire  to  surrender  a  Bond  or  Bonds  next  exceeding 
in  amount  the  consideration  of  the  Deed  or  Sale  to  him, 
then  to  pay  such  excess  in  cash,  and  to  recite  the  same  in 
the  Deed,  and  to  cancel  the  Bond  or  Bonds.  The  proceeds 
of  sales  will  be  thus  constantly  discharging  Bonds,  and 
every  parcel  of  land  cannot  but  be  applied  to  the  payment 
of  the  Bonds  for  which  it  has  been  made  a  security,  and  the 
aggregate  sales  will  cancel  the  whole  of  the  Bonds.  Ade- 
quate security  for  this  purpose  will  be  made,  by  a  proper 
classification  of  the  lands  and  by  putting  upon  each  class  a 
minimum  valuation,  such  as  will  be  more  than  adequate,  in 
the  aggregate,  to  discharge  all  the  Bonds,  and  such  as  the 
Company  and  judicious  men  will  not  hesitate  to  adopt  as  a 
price  which  the  lands  will  command  at  some  time  anterior 
to  the  maturity  of  the  Bonds. 


45 

For  these  purposes  the  lands  mortgaged  for  the 
Construction  Bonds  will  be  divided  into  four  classes,  as 
follows  : 

]  •  Specially  valuable, — such  as  from  any  local  cause, 
possess  a  value  above  lands  for  general  agricultural 
purposes,  as  sites  of  towns  and  villages,  mineral  or 
coal  lands,  unusual  timber,  &c.  These  will  be  enume- 
rated as  far  as  practicable,  and  valued  at  a  minimum 
price  of  $25  per  acre. 

£i  The  farming  lands  esteemed  of  the  highest  value,- 
valued  at  a  minimum  price  of  $15  per  acre. 

3.  The  farming  lands  esteemed  of  ordinary  value^  valued 

at  a  minimum  price  of  $10  per  acre. 

4.  The  farming  lands  esteemed  of  the  lowest  value,  valued 

at  a  minimum  pi  ice  of  $6  per  acre. 

These  lands  will  be  appraised  and  thei  present  value- 
ascertained  as  nearly  as  possible,  but  only  as  a  criterion  of 
their  relative  values,  for  by  the  remote  period  to  which  the 
repayment  of  the  principal  of  the  Construction  Bonds  is 
postponed,  there  can  be  no  immediate  necessity  for  the  con- 
version of  these  lands  into  money.  Hence  the  minimum 
valuations,  below  which  no  parcel  of  land  can  be  sold,  as 
long  an  a  Construction  Bond  is  unpaid^  will  be  made  of 
each  of  the  four  classes  of  lands,  and  thus  all  will  be  held 
by  the  Trustees  and  the  Company,  until  the  actual  demand 
for  any  or  all  of  them  shall  reach  these  minimum  valua- 
tions at  least.  But  it  is  not  intended  that  the  minimum 
valuation  shall  preclude  a  higher  valuation  at  any  time, 
though  it  will  preclude  sales  at  any  price  below  the 
minimum,  except  that  whenever  the  actual  sales  of  any  class 
of  the  mortgaged  lands,  shall  have  been  applied  under  the 
previous  provisions,  to  the  payment  and  satisfaction  of  an 
aggregate  amount  of  Construction  Bonds,  equal  to  the 
aggregate  sum  of  the  minimum  valuations  of  said  class — tho 


4B 

Company  may  sell  and  dispose  of  the  residue  of  the  lands 
of  said  class,  at  such  price  as  they  may  deem  proper,  below 
the  minimum  valuation,  but  the  manner  of  sale  and  appli- 
cation of  the  proceeds  to  the  payment  of  Construction  Bonds 
shall  not  be  altered,  changed  or  modified  hereby. 

By  the  condition  of  sale,  which  will  render  it  necessary, 
as  before  stated,  to  cancel  a  Bond  or  Bonds  on  each  sale 
nearest  in  amount  to  the  purchase  money,  it"  is  evident  that 
the  proportion  of  the  lands  to  which  each  bond  would  be 
entitled,  can  never  be  essentially  disturbed,  and  that  each 
Bond  will  retain,  until  its  maturity,  the  same  relative 
security  upon  the  lands  as  it  had  when  issued. 

This  SECOND  security  then  appears  to  be  adequate  at 
some  date  before  the  maturity  of  the  Bonds,  to  discharge 
them  all,  and  thus  render  the  holder  morally  sure  of  receiv- 
ing his  money  independently  of  any  reliance  upon  the  first 
and  principal  security,  THE  ROAD  ITSELF.  In  this  connec- 
tion it  may  be  proper  to  notice  two  peculiar  characteristics 
of  these  Construction  Bonds. 

1 .  That  a  provision  is  made  for  payment  of  them,  by  means 

separate  from  the  road.  Bonds  of  Railroad  Companies 
are  issued  generally  on  a  mortgage  of  the  Road  only, 
and  unless  paid  from  an  increase  of  the  Capital  Stock, 
are  only  renewed  by  new  loans  and  new  negotiations, 
which  have  been  found,  in  some  cases,  of  much  difficulty 
and  uncertainty. 

2.  That  each  Bondholder  preferring  to  reduce  the  security 

which  he  holds  in  common  with  all  others  protected 
by  the  Trust  Deed,  to  an  individual  possession,  may 
make  his  own  selection  of  lands  from  among  all  which 
may  at  the  time  be  on  sale,  and  use  the  Bonds  "he  holds, 
in  payment  of  the  purchase  money  ;  being  precisely 
the  same  process  as  that  of  foreclosure  of  a  mortgage 
and  tho  purchase  of  the  mortgaged  property. 


47 

The  Company  are  strongly  impressed  with  the  belief  that 
their  Construction  Bonds  are  secured,  as  to  the  principal, 
beyond  all  question,  and  that  the  most  cautious  capitalist 
will  so  consider  them.  They  also  believe,  that  from  this 
strong  confidence  in  the  security  of  the  principal,  and  the 
effect  of  the  punctual  payment  of  the  interest  (the  security 
for  which  will  be  shown  below,)  the  holders  will  soon  demand 
a  premium,  which  will  advance  as  the  actual  demand  for 
lands  near  the  Railroad  increases.  From  this  belief,  a  pro- 
vision has  been  inserted  in  the  Bonds,  authorizing  the  Com- 
pany to  purchase  them  for  the  purpose  of  supplying  pur- 
chasers of  land,  upon  the  best  terms  to  be  obtained  in  market, 
until  the  premium  shall  reach  TWENTY  PER  CENTUM  ad- 
vance upon  the  principal,  and  then  to  require  any  holder  to 
sell  his  Bond  or  Bonds  to  the  Company  at  that  high  rate  of 
premium. 


CONSTRUCTION  BONDS. 

Security  of  (he  Interest  and  Appropriations  for  its 
Payment* 

The  interest  accruing  on  the  Construction  Bonds,  will,  of 
course,  have  the  same  security  by  the  Deed  of  Trust,  and 
other  instruments  as  the  principal  of  those  Bonds.  The 
construction  accounts,  (Art.  8;)  will  include  all  the  interest 
warrants  becoming  due  up  to  the  time  before  named.  W  hen 
the  construction  of  the  Road  and  branches,  as  described  by 
the  engineer,  <fcc.,  shall  be  complete,  the  current  earnings 
will  form  the  proper  and  usual  source  from  whence  the 
u.eai.s  are  to  be  supplied  to  meet  the  current  interest.  But 
the  current  charges  of  the  service  from  which  the  gross  re- 
ceipts have  accrued,  must  be  first  paid  and  the  obligations 
of  the  Company  to  the  State  must  also  be  first  discharged. 
The  following  appropriations  are  proposed. 

The  receipts  from  the  Transportation  Department,  and 
from  all  incidental  sources  connected  with  the  service  on 
the  line  are  appropriated  as  follows  : 

I.  To  the  payment  of  all  current  charges,  such  as  wages, 
repairs  of  lload,  rolling  stock,  &c.,  as  usual,  and  to 
cover  such  annual  depreciation  as  shall  maintain  the 
rolling  stock  equal  to  its  original  valuation,  and  to 
such  additions  as  may  be  made  thereto  from  capital 
accounts,  but  not  inclusive  of  new  and  additional  equip- 
ment, except  on  special  order  of  the  Directors,  after  full 
provision  for  the  payment  to  the  State  anil  for  the 
interest:  including,  however,  all  such  expenses  of  the 
incorporation  as  may  be  ordered  specially  as  a  current 


49 

2*  To  the  payment  of  the  State  duty  or  tax  not  over  seven 
per  cent,  of  the  gross  receipts. 

3.  To  the  payment  of  the  full  amount  of  Interest  Warrants 

as  they  scan-annually  mature. 

4.  To  the  payment  of  such  Dividends  as  the  Directors 

may  order  from  time  to  time,  to  be  paid  to  the  Stock- 
holders, or  to  such  other  appropriation  as  the  Direc- 
tors may  order. 

By  this  appropriation  of  the  receipts  of  the  road,  full 
security  is  given  for  the  proper  application  of  earnings,  and 
it  is  probable  that  by  a  judicious  arrangement  of  the  service, 
an  amount  sufficient  to  defray  the  interest  on  all  the  Con- 
struction Bonds  will  be  earned  from  the  time  the  line  is  put 
in  operation.  But  to  remove  all  grounds  of  apprehension 
as  to  a  deficiency  of  receipts  at  the  commencement  of  the 
business  of  the  Road,  an  INTEREST  FUND,  from  which 
such  deficiencies  are  to  be  supplied,  will  be  created  and 
maintained,  as  follows : 

1 .  By  the  appropriation  to  this  Fund  of  any  profit  which 

may  be  realized  by  the  operation  of  such  parts  of  the 
Road  and  branches  as  may  be  ready  for  use  before  the 
completion  of  the  whole  line. 

2.  By  the  appropriation  of  the  proceeds  of  sales  of  250,000 

acres  of  the  Donated  Lands,  set  aside  for  this  purpose, 
and  held  by  the  Trustees  free  of  incumbrance. 

3.  By   the   appropriation  of  the  entire   amount    of  the 

present  capital  of  one  million  of  dollars,  and  of  the  pro- 
posed increase  of  another  million  of  dollars,  and  of  all 
the  instalments  called  in,  or  to  be  called  in,  from  time 
to  time,  upon  this  Stock,  but  it  is  not  intended  by  this 
appropriation  to  exclude  the  further  issue  of  Capital 
Stock,  to  the  extent  limited  by  the  charter,  for  any 
purpose  to  which  the  Directors  may  deem  it  judicious 


50 

•to  make  such  increase,  always  providing  against  any 
preference  or  benefit,  to  such  increased  Capital  over 
the  Stock  hereby  appropriated, 

It  will  be  the  duty  of  the  Directors  so  to  invest  and  man- 
age this  Fund  as  to  make  it  ready  convertible  into  cash,  to 
prevent  any  delay  in  the  payment  of  the  Interest  War- 
rants. The  interest  to  accrue  upon  this  Fund  will  be  an- 
nually appropriated  as  part  of  the  Fund  to  the  payment 
of  any  deficiency  which  may  happen  in  that  year ;  and 
should  there  be  no  deficiency,  will  be  subject  to  the  order 
.of  the  Directors. 

For  the  purpose  of  payment  of  any  deficiency,  the  drafts 
will  be  made  as  follows  : 

1.  On  the  current  interest  of  the  Interest  Funds. 

2.  On  the  invested  profits  of  partial  operation,  &c, 

3.  On  the  proceeds  of  the  sales  of  lands. 

4.  On  the  Capital  Stock  of  Two  Millions  of  Dollars,  as 

above  appropriated,  when  it  will  be  the  duty  of  the 
Directors  in  case  the  Stock  be  not  full  paid,  to  require 
payment  of  instalments,  at  least  adequate  to  the 
preservation  of  the  integrity  of  the  Fund, 

By  these  arrangements,  together  with  such  other  provis- 
ions as  further  consideration  and  actual  experience  may  sug- 
gest, you  will  give  full  security  to  your  Construction  Bonds. 
The  Act  of  Congress  granting  the  lands,  and  the  Act  of 
Illinois  to  incorporate  the  Company,  both  confer  ample 
powers  for  the  execution  of  these  arrangements,  and  both 
bind  you  most  closely  to  the  faithful  use  of  your  powers, 
and  the  true  and  honest  appropriation  of  the  lands  to  the 
construction  of  the  Road.  At  the  same  time,  it  is  to  be  re^ 
membered  that  your  powers  are  not  only  created  by  legis- 
lation, but  are  also  MATTERS  OF  CONTRACT,  set  forth  at 
length  in  carefully  drawn  Deeds,  executed  by  the  proper 


51 

authorities,  under  the  Great  Seal  of  the  State  of  Illinois, 
and  are  thus  made  secure  against  injudicious  enactments, 
(should  such  measures  ever  be  in  contemplation)  and  placed 
under  the  care  of  the  COURTS  and  LAWS  of  the  UNITED 
STATES. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

ROBERT  SCHUYLER,  President. 
NEW- YORK,  April  23;  1851. 


UNIVERSITY  OF 
ILLINOIS  LIBRARY 


52 


To  the  DIRECTORS  of  the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  R,  R,  Co, 

In  the  Report  of  April  last,  I  submitted  for  your  consid- 
eration the  Financial  Plan  proposed  for  the  Loans  to  be 
negotiated  for  the  construction  of  your  Road.  Since  that 
time,  a  wide  circulation  has  been  given  to  that  Report,  and 
the  opinions  of  many  of  the  best  informed  residents  of  the 
Western  States  upon  it,  have  been  furnished  to  us,  and  it 
is  with  much  gratification  that  I  state  that  the  position  wo 
assumed,  that  the  mortgaged  land  would  reach  a  market 
price  equal  to  and  beyond  the  necessary  amount  of  the 
Construction  Bonds,  anterior  to  the  maturity  of  those  Bonds, 
has  been  very  strongly  supported.  In  some  cases  onr 
minimum  valuation,  has  been  considered  far  too  low  for 
even  the  advance  in  value  in  ten  years  after  completion  ot 
the  Road,  but  scarcely  a  doubt  has  been  expressed  by  any 
one  as  to  the  great  and  important  point,  of  the  ADEQUATE 

VALUE  OF  THE  MORTGAGED  LANDS  TO  THE  FULL  DIS- 
CHARGE AND  SATISFACTION  OF  THE  MORTGAGE  DEBT. 

I  submit  herewith  the  letters  received  from  gentlemen  in 
the  West,  whose  interest  in  the  developement  of  the 
incalculable  agricultural  advantages  of  Illinois  has  induced 
them  to  reply  to  our  circulars,  and  to  give  the  benefit  of 
their  judicious  observation  and  familiar  acquaintance  with 
the  effect  of  affording  facilities  of  communication  to  the 
lands  of  Illinois.  Un  ler  all  the  testimony  thus  received, 
supported  by  many  verbal  communications,  you  are  justified 
in  assuming  that  your  Financial  Plan  proposes  to  the 
purchasers  of  your  Construction  Bonds  PERFECT  AND- 
ENTIRE  SECURITY  from  the  PUBLIC  LANDS  alone. 

No  important  alterations  have  be'en  suggested  as  to  the 
provisions  by  which  the  Construction  Bonds  were  to  be 
secured  either  as  to  the  Principal  or  Interest,  and  it  may, 
therefore  be  presumed  that  in  all  these  particulars  the  plan 
proposed  is  entirely  satisfactory. 


53 

In  the  month  of  May,  R.  B.  MASON,  the  Engineer  in 
Chief,  organized  the  several  companies  necessary  for  the 
primary  surveys  and  final  location  of  the  Road  and  Branches. 
Some  delay  in  prosecuting  these  surveys  has  arisen  on  the 
Southern  part  of  the  line,  and  consequently  the  Report  of 
the  Chief  Engineer  having  been  submitted  in  an  unfinished 
condition,  is  not  yet  prepared  for  publication.  It  is  full  of 
minute  and  detailed  Statements,  of  great  value  and  interest 
to  the  Directors,  but  it  will  now  only  be  in  my  power  to 
place  before  you  some  of  Mr.  Mason's  conclusions  and  some 
of  his  estimates  and  calculations. 

Mr.  Mason  has  passed  over  the  routes  of  the  Main  Road 
and  Branches,  not  only  for  the  purpose  of  a  proper  recon- 
noisance  of  the  formation  of  the  country,  but  also  of 
ascertaining  the  general  character  of  the  lands  to  be  received 
from  the  United  States  on  the  several  routes  which  may  be 
selected.  He  reports  most  favorably  of  the  fertility  and 
agricultural  value  of  the  regions  in  which  he  proposes  to 
locate  the  Road,  and  particularly  notices  the  very  small  pro- 
portion which  might  be  considered  as  embraced  within  the 
class  denominated  in  our  Report  as  "  Inferior  Lands."  In 
consequence  of  this  opinion,  it  is  suggested  as  advantageous, 
to  transfer  from  that  class  of  the  lowest  valuation,  one  hun- 
dred thousand  acres  to  the  class  next  in  valuation,  consist- 
ing of  lands  of  the  Uniform  excellence  pervading  the  whole 
State  of  Illinois. 

The  demand  for  the  purchase  of  the  Government  lands 
within  the  influence  of  our  Road  has  become  exceedingly 
great,  and  pre-emption  entries  for  the  sections  not  passing 
under  the  grant  of  Congress,  have  been  made  to  a  vast 
amount,  and  even  several  entries  for  the  same  land  are  not 
uncommon.  A  like  demand  will  exist  for  all  the  lands  be- 
longing to  our  Company,  as  soon  as  they  are  placed  on  sale, 
promising  not  only  an  early  conversion  of  those  lands  into 
money,  and  an  immediate  demand  for  the  Construction 
Bonds,  but  also  the  actual  settlement  and  cultivation  of  the 
entire  districts  through  which  our  Road  is  located,  by  the 
7 


time  of  its  completion  and  operation.  So  immediately  do 
the  farms  of  Illinois  become  productive  to  the  settler,  that 
large  crops  are  harvested  within  a  year  or  two  of  the  com- 
mencement of  cultivation,  and  by  the  time  our  trains  are  in 
motion,  a  vast  amount  of  business  from  lands  now  vacant 
and  unoccupied  will  be  in  readiness  for  us.  These  consid- 
erations point  out  the  vast  importance  of  such  arrangements 
as  will  enable  you  to  sell  your  lands  at  the  earliest  possible 
period  at  which  they  can  be  made  to  produce  the  amount, 
for  the  payment  of  which  they  are  to  be  mortgaged,  and 
therefore  to  reduce  the  minimum  valuations  to  the  lowest 
rate.  The  rates  were  made  in  the  Report  of  April,  under 
the  impressions,  then  existing,  as  to  the  cost  of  the  Road, 
as  well  as  the  probable  period  when  the  lands  would  be  in 
demand.  It  is  now  believed  that  the  demand  will  arrive  at 
a  much  earlier  day  than  originally  supposed ;  and  fortu- 
nately, also  as  far  as  now  appears,  the  cost  of  the  Road  will 
probably  be  less  than  was  then  estimated. 

The  lines  which  have  been  surveyed  by  the  Engineer 
Corps  has  been  numerous  and  the  country  has  been  thor- 
oughly explored.  Mr.  Mason  condenses  these  surveys 
into  the  following  statement  of  the  characteristics  of  the 
Road  and  Branches : 

The  entire  length  of  the  Road  and  Branches,  miles  699. 

Of  which  will  be  straight  line,  miles  626.77 
«  Radii  from  1500  to  2000  feet,  «  5.40 
«  "  "  2000  to  3000  «  «  12.28 
«  "  «  3000  to  4000  "  "  24.26 
«  "  «  4000  to  5000  "  "  15.66 
«  «  over  5000  "  "  1463 


miles  699.00 

Shewing  about  10  per  ct.  of  curved  lines,  and  those  mostly 
of  large  radii. 

The  general  appearance  of  the  country  is  found  to  be 
somewhat  deceptive  as  to  the  inequalities  of  the  surface, 


55 

and  the  great  depth  of  the  beds  of  the  streams  and  rivers, 
and  of  the  meadows  adjoining,  helow  the  level  of  the 
Praries,  required  the  introduction  of  occasional  grades  of 
the  ordinary  elevation  of  the  Railroads  of  this  section  of 
the  country,  though  more  than  one-third  of  the  road  for  all 
general  purposes  is  practially  level. 

The  gradients  are  as  follows : 

Level,  miles  238.29 

Ascent  less  chan  10  feet  per  mile,  "      113.09 

"       from  10  to  20  feet  per  mile,  "      118.19 

«          "    20  to  30    "      "      "  "       89.05 

«          "    30  to  40    "      "      "  "      132.48 

u         Of             42    «      «      »  «         7.50 

Total  miles,    699.00 

The  42  feet  grade  occurs  in  ascending  the  Fever  River, 
from  Galena  East  to  Scales  Mound,  and  may  probably  be 
reduced  to  the  maximum  grades  on  other  parts  of  the  line, 
(40  feet)  without  heavy  expense. 

Mr.  Mason's  personal  examinations  of  the  country  and 
the  line  of  the  Road,  have  enabled  him  to  prepare  an 
estimate  of  the  cost  of  the  work,  with  all  the  necessary 
appurtenances  and  equipment,  which  he  submits  "  with  the 
fullest  confidence  that  it  will  be  found  ample  to  meet 
every  expense  in  the  construction  and  equipment  of 
a  first  class  Road,"  This  estimate  includes  the  cost  of  the 
following  items: 

21,428,523  cubic  yards  Embankment, 
369,951      «        "      Rock  Excavation. 
222,206      «        "      Masonry. 
10,228  feet  Bridging,  &c.,  &c. 

735  miles,  Superstructure,  Rails,  &c. 
40  Passenger  Stations  and  houses. 
40  Freight  Stations  and  Houses. 
70  Locomotives  and  Tenders. 


56 

70  Passenger     Cars. 

20  Baggage  u 
700  Box  Freight  « 
600  Platform  " 
200  Cattle  « 

and  also  Right  of  Way,  land  and  damages,  fencing  and 
engineering,  Engine  houses,  MacMne  Shops,  Woodsheds, 
Water  Tanks,  Tools  and  Machinery  for  shops,  and  Furni- 
ture for  Station  houses,  &c.,  &c.  The  result  exhibits  a  cost 
of  Sixteen  Millions  Five  Hundred  and  Thirty-seven  Thou- 
sand Two  Hundred  and  Twelve  Dollars,  ($16,537,212.) 

Mr.  Mason's  Report  establishes  the  actual  length  of  the 
Road  and  Branches  at  six  hundred  and  ninety-nine  miles, 
by  which  the  whole  number  of  acres  to  be  granted  to  the 
Company  will  amount  to  Two  Millions,  Six  Hundred  and 
Eighty-four  Thousand,  One  Hundred  and  Sixty  Acres 
(Acres  2,684,160.) 

The  estimate  of  the  cost  of  the  Road  and  Branches,  now 
submitted,  justify  the  conclusion  that  the  total  amount  of 
the  Construction  Bonds  which  it  will  be  necessary  to  issue 
for  the  purposes  to  which  they  were  appropriated  by  the 
Report  of  April  last,  will  not  exceed  Seventeen  Millions  of 
Dollars.  It  has,  therefore,  met  the  approbation  of  the 
Executive  Committee  to  advise  the  Directors  to  execute  a 
Mortgage  on  Two  Millions  of  Acres  of  the  Public  Lands 
granted  to  our  Company,  to  secure  Ten  Thousand  Bonds  of 
One  Thousand  Dollars  each,  and  Fourteen  Thousand  Bonds 
of  Five  Hundred  Dollars  each,  making  the  sum  of  Seven- 
teen Millions  of  Dollars.  By  this  reduction  of  the  amount 
of  the  Construction  Bonds,  as  well  as  by  the  considerations 
before  stated,  lower  minimum  valuations  of  the  several 
classes  of  the  mortgaged  lands  are  justified  and  have  been 
arranged  as  follows: 


57 

1.  First  class,   consisting  of  lands  of  SPECIAL 
VALUE,  from  peculiarity  of  location,  as  near 
Town  or  Village  sites,  Coal  fields,  Quarries 
of  Stone,  Minerals,  &c.,  &c. 
50,000  Acres  minimum  valuation  $20  per 

acre,  $1,000,000 

2  Second  class,  of  lands  of  SUPERIOR  AGRICUL- 
TURAL QUALITIES  and  LOCATION. 
350,000  Acres  minimum  valuation  $15  per 

acre,  5,250,000 

3.  Third  class  of  lands  of  high  AGRICULTURAL 

QUALITIES,  almost  universal  in  the  State  of 
Illinois. 

1,300,000  Acres,  minimum  valuation  $  8  per 
acre.  10,400,000 

4.  Fourth  class  of  lands  of  the  LOWEST  AGRI- 

CULTURAL QUALITIES,  within  15  miles  of 
the  Road  or  Branches,  but  all  capable  of 
cultivation. 

300,000  Acres,  minimum  valuation  $5  per 
acre.  1,500,000 


Forming  an  aggregate  minmum  valuation 
of  2,000,000  acres  of  $18,150,000 

The  plan  for  securing  the  payment  of  the  Construction 
Bonds  remains,  in  other  respects  substantially  without 
alteration,  and  herewith  is  submitted  the  draft  of  the  mort- 
gage proposed  to  be  executed  to  the  Trustees  holding  the 
title  of  your  lands.  The  provisions  of  this  important 
Instrument  are  in  pursuance  of  the  system  which  pervades 
your  Financial  Plan,  of  affording  to  those  who  furnish  the 
money  for  the  accomplishment  of  your  enterprise,  all  the 
security  of  the  results  proposed  by  the  proper  application 
of  the  Funds  to  the  construction  of  the  Road  and  Branches 
and  all  the  property  which  you  have  received  in  its  aid. 
Should  the  negotiations,  which  will  soon  be  commenced 
with  capitalists  abroad,  require  further  provisions,  these 
may  at  all  times  be  added  by  a  further  mortgage  of  like 
efficiency  with  the  present. 


58 

I  submit  herewith  an  essay  upon  the  position  and  pros- 
pects of  the  "ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD,"  written 
and  published  by  D.  A.  NEAL,  Esq.,  now  your  Vice 
President.  This  essay  embodies  the  valuable  conclusions 
of  a  most  practical  mind,  enriched  by  long  and  close  obser- 
vation as  to  the  COMMERCIAL  VALUE  OF  YOUR  ENTER- 
PRISE. The  writer  labors  constantly  to  reduce  rather  than 
enlarge  each  source  of  probable  revenue  to  the  Road,  and 
on  the  other  hand  to  provide  most  liberally  by  the  service 
to  be  performed  in  earning  the  revenue,  and  his  conclusions, 
therefore  carry  conviction  to  every  mind. 

From  all  quarters  are  the  views  and  estimates  of 
Mr.Neal  fully  confirmed,  and  it  would  be  in  vain  to  attempt 
to  prepare  statements  upon  this  branch  of  your  affairs, 
better  suited  to  give  reliance  upon  the  income  of  the  Road 
when  finished,  than  those  now  submitted.  Mr.  Neal's 
estimates  result  in  a  net  income  to  the  Company,  after  pay- 
ment to  the  State  of  an  interest  of  seven  per  centum  per 
annum  on  between  twenty-eight  and  twenty-nine  Millions 
of  Dollars. 

Mr.  Mason  has  also  prepared  very  careful  estimates  of 
the  probable  income  of  the  Road,  and  though  his  aim  has 
been  not  to  overvalue  any  source  of  business,  and  to  omit 
all  questionable  traffic,  yet  his  conclusions  reach  nearly  the 
same  results  to  which  Mr.  Neal  arrived.  Mr.  Mason's 
estimates  are  as  follows  : 

From  373,333  tons  Produce,  carried  100  miles  at  $4  per  ton,      $1,493  332 

"  Coal, 100,000 

"  Lumber,        ......  150.000 

"  12.520  tons  through  freight  at  $12  per  ton,        .           .  150,240 

"  62,600    i;    local          "        "  $5    "      "               .  313,000 

"  31,300  through  Passengers,  at  $10,        .           .           .  313,000 

"  15,650        "               "           Galena  Branch,  at  $10,  156,500 

"  Local  Passengers,            .....  469,500 

"  Mails  and  Expresses,           ....  95,000 

Gross  Income,    $3,240,572 
Deduct  State  Tax  at  7  per  cent.  $226,840 
Cost  of  operating,  1,1 26.800 

Contingent,  1 12,680 

1,466,320 

Net  Income,    $1,774,252 


59 

Net  income  of  One  Million  Seven  Hundred  and  Seventy- 
four  Thousand  Two  Hundred  and  Fifty-two  Dollars,  equal 
to  an  Interest  of  seven  per  centum  per  annum,  on  between 
Twenty-five  and  Twenty-six  Millions  of  Dollars. 

These  results,  it  -will  be  remembered,  are  those  of  prac- 
tical men,  perfectly  conversant  with  the  laws  which  govern 
the  traffic  of  Railroads,  to  which  each  has  arrived  without 
consultation  with  the  other,  and  both  with  a  single  purpose 
of  aifording  the  most  reliable  information  to  you  and  the 
public.  That  the  earliest  operations  of  your  Road  will 
more  than  realize  all  the  anticipations  of  these  gentlemen 
and  of  yourselves  I  have  no  question. 

In  the  course  of  a  short  time,  Mr.  Mason  will  be  enabled 
to  report  the  precise  location  of  the  Road  and  Branches, 
when  the  actual  selection  of  the  Public  Lands  will  be  made 
at  the  Land  Office  in  Washington,  and  the  several  parcels 
be  certified  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  and  the  title  to  each 
parcel  will  then  be  perfect  in  your  Trustees  under  the 
Deed  from  the  Governor.  By  the  same  time,  unless  at  an 
earlier  day,  the  lines  will  be  ready  for  contracts  of  con- 
struction, and  the  work  be  commenced  at  several  points. 

Respectfully  submitted, 

ROBERT  SCHUYLER, 

PRESIDENT. 
NEW-YORK,  Sept.  12,  185 1 


60 


MORTGAGE 

THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD  COMPANY 


TO 


MOKRIS  KETCHUM,   JOHN  MOORE   and  SAMUEL  D. 
LOCKWOOD. 


XtrtrentUte  Of  fftOrtflajje,  made  the  thirteenth 
day  of  September,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hun- 
dred and  fifty-one,  BETWEEN  THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD 
COMPANY,  a  Corporation  created  by  an  Act  of  the  Legislature  of 
the  State  of  Illinois,  approved  on  the  tenth  day  of  February, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty- 
one,  of  the  first  part,  and  MORRIS  KETCHUM,  of  the  City,  County 
and  State  of  New-  York,  and  JOHN  MOORE  and  SAMUEL  D. 
LOCKWOOD,  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  being  the  Trustees  named 
in  the  said  Act  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  of  the 
second  part,  WITNESSETH  ;  S^Ufjtt'CilS,  The  parties  of  the 
first  part,  for  the  purpose  of  raising  funds  from  time  to  time, 
for  the  construction  and  completion  of  the  Railroad  and  Branches 
authorized  by  the  provisions  of  the  said  Act  of  Incorporation, 
and  for  the  purchase  of  iron  and  other  materials  to  be  used 
therein,  and  for  the  expenses  of  the  organization  and  maintainance 
of  the  said  corporation  and  compensation  of  the  Officers,  Agents, 
Trustees,  Engineers,  and  other  necessary  assistants,  propose  to  exe- 
cute and  deliver  their  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations  in  pursu- 
ance of  the  provisions  of  the  Act  aforesaid,  and  thereby  to  become 
indebted  to  divers  persons,  bodies  politic  or  corporate,  who  shall 
become  holders  of  the  said  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations,  in  the 
just  and  full  sum,  in  the  aggregate,  of  Seventeen  Millions  of  Dol- 
lars, lawful  money  of  the  United  States  of  America,  secured  to  be 
paid  by  their  Ten  Thousand  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations  of 
and  for  One  Thousand  Dollars  each,  and  by  their  Fourteen  Thou- 
sand Constr  uction  Bonds  or  obligations  of  and  for  Five  Hundred 
Dollars  each,  providing  for  the  payment  unto  the  said  persons,  asso- 


61 

ciations,  bodies  politic  or  corporate,  and  their  executors,  administra- 
tors, successors,  survivors  and  assigns  respectively,  of  the  said  sums 
of  one  thousand  dollars  and  five  hundred  dollars,  named  in  said 
Construction  Bonds  or  obligations  respectively,  on  the  first  day  of 
April,  which  will  be  in  the  year  One  thousand  eight  hundred  and 
seventy  -five,  (1875,)  and  also  interest  for  the  same,  at  and  after  the 
rate  of  seven  per  centum  per  annum,  payable  on  the  first  day  of 
every  October  and  April,  ensuing  the  date  of  the  said  Construction 
Bonds  or  obligations,  until  the  principal  sums  named  in  said  Con- 
struction Bonds  or  obligations  respectively,  shall  be  severally  paid 
and  satisfied,  in  the  manner  and  form  in  the  said  Construction 
Bonds  or  obligations  set  forth  and  declared,  as  by  reference  thereto, 
will  more  fully  appear. 


,  THIS  INDENTURE  WITNESSETH  ;  That  the 
said  parties  of  the  first  part,  for  the  better  securing  and  more  sure 
payment  of  the  said  sums  of  money  mentioned  in  the  said  Construc- 
tion Bonds  or  obligations,  and  each  and  every  of  them,  with  inter- 
est thereon,  according  to  the  true  intent  and  meaning  thereof,  and 
also,  for  and  in  consideration  of  the  sum  of  one  dollar,  in  hand  paid 
by  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part,  at  or  before  the  ensealing  and 
delivery  of  these  presents,  the  receipt  whereof  is  hereby  acknow- 
ledged :  HAVE  granted,  bargained  and  sold,  remised,  released, 
conveyed  and  confirmed,  and  by  these  presents,  Do  grant,  bargain 
and  sell,  remise,  release,  convey  and  confirm  unto  the  said  parties 
hereto  of  the  second  part,  and  the  survivors  and  survivor  of  them, 
and  the  heirs  and  assigns  of  such  survivor  forever,  ALL  and  singu- 
lar the  several  pieces  or  parcels  of  land,  being  the  Roadway, 
Stations  and  Depots  of  the  Railroad  of  the  said  parties  of  the  first 
part,  from  the  Southern  terminus  of  the  Illinois  and  Michigan 
Canal,  to  the  City  of  Cairo,  and  all  and  singular  the  station  and 
depot  buildings,  Engine  Houses,  and  other  improvements  and  con- 
structions thereon  now  made,  or  hereafter  to  be  made. 

And  also  all  and  singular  the  several  pieces  or  parcels  of  land, 
being  the  Roadway,  Stations  and  depots  of  the  Branch  Railroad 
authorized  by  the  said  Act  of  Incorporation,  commencing  at  a  point 
in  the  main  Railroad  aforesaid,  being  the  point  of  Intersection  of 
the  line  of  the  Main  Railroad,  with  the  Northerly  line  of  Township 
Two  North,  one  East,  in  the  County  of  Marion,  near  the  Third 
Principal  Meridian,  and  running  thence  to  the  City  of  Chicago  : 


62 

AND  ALL  AND  SINGULAR  the  Station  and  Depot  Buildings,  Engine 
Houses  and  other  improvements  and  constructions  thereon,  now 
made  or  hereafter  to  be  made. 


til.  90,  All  and  singular,  the  several  pieces  or  parcels  of 
land,  heing  the  Roadway,  stations  and  depots  of  the  Branch  Railroad 
authorized  by  said  Act  of  Incorporation,  commencing  at  the  Northern 
terminus  of  the  Main  Railroad,  and  the  Southern  terminus  of  the 
Illinois  and  Michigan  Canal,  and  running  by  way  of  the  City  of 
Galena  to  a  point  on  the  Mississippi  River,  opposite  the  town  of 
Dubuque,  in  the  State  of  Iowa,  and  all  and  singular  the  Station  and 
Depot  Buildings,  Engine  Houses  and  other  improvements  and  con- 
structions thereon,  now  made  or  hereafter  to  be  made  :  TOGETHER 
with  all  and  singular  the  emoluments,  income  and  advantages, 
rights,  franchises,  tenements,  hereditaments  and  appurtenances  to 
the  above  described  premises,  and  each  and  every  of  them  belong- 
ing, or  in  any  wise  appertaining. 

And  also  Two  Millions  of  Acres  of  land  and  premises  situated, 
lying  and  being  in  the  State  of  Illinois,  adjoining  and  adjacent  to 
the  above  described  Railroad  and  Branches,  parts  and  parcels  of  the 
lands  which  were  granted  to  the  State  of  Illinois,  by  the  Act  of 
Congress  of  the  United  States,  approved  the  twentieth  day  of  Sep- 
tember, one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty,  entitled  "  An  Act 
granting  the  right  of  way  and  making  a  grant  of  land  to  the  States 
of  Illinois,  Mississippi  and  Alabama,  in  aid  of  the  Construction  of  a 
Railroad  from  Chicago  to  Mobile,"  and  by  the  State  of  Illinois 
granted  and  conveyed  in  fee  simple  to  the  parties  hereto  of  the  first 
part,  by  Indenture  bearing  date  the  twenty-fourth  day  of  March, 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-one,  duly  executed  by  the 
Governor  of  said  State,  "  in  his  official  capacity,  and  in  behalf  of 
the  State  of  Illinois,  and  under  the  Great  Seal  thereof,"  as  by 
reference  thereto,  or  the  record  thereof,  will  more  fully  appear, 
which  Two  Millions  of  acres  of  land  hereby  intended  to  be  convey- 
ed, are  to  be  selected  by  the  parties  to  this  Indenture  of  the  first 
part,  and  specially  set  aside  and  appropriated  to  the  purposes  of  this 
mortgage,  and  proper  Schedules  and  Lists  thereof  prepared,  approv- 
ed and  confirmed,  under  the  corporate  seal  of  the  parties  of  the  first 
part  in  Duplicate,  and  properly  annexed  to  this  Indenture  so  as  to 
give  to  the  same  the  effect  of  a  particular  and  detailed  description 
of  each  separate  piece  or  parcel  of  land  set  forth  in  this  Indenture  : 


63 

TOGETHER  with  all  and  singular  the  emoluments,  income  and  advan- 
tages, tenements,  hereditaments  and  appurtenances  thereunto  be- 
longing, or  in  anywise  appertaining,  and  the  reversion  and  rever- 
sions, remainder  and  remainders,  rents,  issues  and  profits  thereof  : 
AND  also,  all  the  estate,  right,  title  and  interest,  property,  possession, 
claim  and  demand  whatsoever,  at  law  or  in  equity,  of  the  said 
parties  of  the  first  part,  of,  in  and  to  the  same,  and  each  and  every 
part  and  parcel  thereof,  with  the  appurtenances  :  To  HAVE  AND  TO 
HOLD  all  and  singular  the  lands  and  premises  hereby  granted,  or 
intended  so  to  be,  and  each  and  every  part  and  parcel  thereof,  with 
the  appurtenances,  unto  the  said  parties  hereto  of  the  second  part, 
and  the  survivors  and  survivor  of  them,  and  the  heirs  and  assigns 
of  such  survivor  forever,  as  joint  tenants  and  not  as  tenants  in  com- 
mon, for  the  uses  and  purposes  in  this  Indenture  set  forth  and 
declared,  and  subject  to  the  provisions  and  requirements  of  the  be- 
fore mentioned  Act  of  Congress  of  the  United  States,  and  the  Act 
passed  by  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  incorporating  the 
said  THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY,  and  subject  also 
to  the  possession,  control  and  management  of  the  Directors  of  said 
Company,  so  long  as  said  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations  shall 
remain  unforfeited,  by  the  proper  performance  of  all  the  stipulations 
thereof. 


<llU)<rr>£,  And  these  presents  are  upon  the 
express  condition,  that  if  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part,  shall  well 
and  truly  pay  or  cause  to  be  paid  to  the  holders  of  the  said  Con- 
struction Bonds  or  obligations,  and  every  of  them,  the  principal 
sums  of  money  therein  mentioned,  according  to  the  true  intent  and 
meaning  thereof,  with  the  interest  thereon,  at  the  times  and  in  the 
manner  as  hereinafter  provided,  according  to  the  true  intent  and 
meaning  of  these  presents,  that  then  and  from  thenceforth  this 
Indenture  and  the  Estate  hereby  granted,  shall  cease,  determine 
and  be  utterly  void. 


tijis  Xntontttrc  further  tottne0seti)  :  That 

these  presents  and  the  said  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations  are 
made,  executed  and  delivered  upon  the  terms,  conditions  and 
agreements  following,  that  is  to  say  : 

FIRST.  That  the  actual  possession,  use,  management  and  control 
of  the  said  Railroad  and  both  Branches,  with  all  the  appurtenances 
to  them  belonging,  shall  be  and  remain  with  the  parties  of  the  first 


64 

part,  without  any  molestation  or  interference  of  the  parties  of  the 
second  part,  so  long  as  the  said  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations 
shall  remain  without  default  or  forfeiture,  and  said  parties  of  the 
first  part  shall  perform  and  keep  the  stipulations  thereof. 

SECOND.  That  the  Two  Millions  of  acres  of  land  granted  as  afore- 
said, shall  be  carefully  valued  and  appraised  by  the  said  parties  of 
the  first  part,  their  Officers  and  Agents,  and  the  relative  value  of 
each  piece  or  parcel  of  land,  established  for  the  purpose  of  Division 
and  Allotment  thereof  into  Four  Classes  of  the  following  Number 
of  acres  and  valuations,  that  is  to  say  : 

1 .  First  Class,  consisting  of  lands  of  SPECIAL 

VALUE,  as  Coal  Fields,  Quarries  of  Stone, 
Minerals,  &c.,  or  from  peculiarity  of  loca- 
tion, as  being  near  towns  or  villages. 
50,000  acres  minimum  valuation  $20  per 
acre $1,000,000 

2.  Second  Class,  of  lands  of  SUPERIOR  AGRI- 

CULTURAL QUALITIES  and  LOCATION. 

350,000  acres,  minimum  valuation  $15 

per  acre 5,250,000 

«$.  Third  Class  of  lands  of  high  AGRICULTURAL 
QUALITIES,  almost  universal  in  the  State 
of  Illinois. 

1,300,000  acres,  minimum  valuation  $8 
per  acre, 10,400,000 

4.  Fourth  Class,  of  lands  of  the  LOWEST 
AGRICULTURAL  QUALITIES,  within  fifteen 
miles  of  the  Road  or  Branches,  but  all 
capable  of  cultivation. 
300,000  acres,  minimum  valuation  $5  per 
acre,  .  .  .  .  1,500,000 


Forming     an     aggregate     valuation    for 

2,000,000  acres  of     ...         $18,150,000 


65 

All  of  which  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part,  with  as  little  delay 
as  practicable,  shall  certify  and  declare  to  the  said  parties  of  the 
second  part,  by  proper  Lists  and  Schedules,  under  seal,  with  such 
description  as  shall  enable  the  parties  of  the  second  part  to  ascer- 
tain and  establish  the  precise  location,  position  and  boundaries  of 
each  and  every  piece  or  parcel  of  said  land,  and  the  class  to  which 
the  same  belongs,  and  the  price  or  sum  for  which  the  same  may  be 
sold  and  conveyed ;  which  price  or  sum  may  be  varied  and  changed, 
from  time  to  time,  at  the  pleasure  of  said  parties  of  the  first  part. 
3|robttT0tt  1)0 tot t)£t,  That  the  selling  price  of  any  piece  or 
parcel  of  land  shall  in  no  case  be  less  than  the  minimum  valuation 
of  the  same  hereinbefore  given,  and  of  the  class  to  which  it  is  allot- 
ted, until  the  aggregate  sum  actually  realized  and  received  in 
money,  or  by  the  surrender  of  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations, 
as  hereinafter  provided,  shall  amount  to  the  aggregate  valuation  of 
any  of  the  classes  above  set  forth  and  declared,  when  the  said  parties 
of  the  first  part  may  instruct  and  empower  the  said  parties  of  the 
second  part  to  sell  and  convey  any  remaining  pieces  or  parcels  of 
land  of  said  class,  at  such  price  as  they  may  deem  proper,  even 
below  the  minimum  valuation  of  the  class,  but  not  to  alter  or  change 
the  mode  of  selling,  or  the  appropriation  of  the  proceeds  and  receipts 
from  such  sales. 

THIRD.  That  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part  having  received 
from  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part,  such  said  Lists,  Schedules, 
Allotments,  Valuations  and  selling  prices,  shall  and  will  grant,  bar- 
gain, sell  and  convey  to  all  persons,  bodies  politic  or  corporate, 
applying  for  the  purchase  of  the  lands  and  premises  above  mention- 
ed, making  or  tendering  payment  therefor,  at  prices  not  less  than 
the  selling  rates  established  by  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part,  and 
shall  require  in  payment  the  surrender  of  Construction  Bonds,  or 
Bond,  nearest  in  amount  to  the  actual  purchase  money  and  consid- 
eration of  the  conveyance,  and  the  payment  of  the  residue  of  said 
purchase  money  in  cash  ;  but  in  no  case  shall  any  piece  or  parcel 
of  land  be  sold  or  conveyed  by  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part, 
without  the  surrender  and  consequent  discharge  of  said  Construction 
Bonds  or  Bond.  And  whenever  any  purchaser  may  tender  Con- 
struction Bonds  or  Bond,  exceeding  in  amount  the  purchase  money 
of  the  land  for  which  application  is  made,  the  parties  of  the  second 
part  may  receive  the  same  and  pay  the  excess,  (provided  the  same 
does  not  exceed  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  in  any  one  case,)  in 


66 

money  to  the  purchaser :  the  intent  thereof  being  thereby  to 
anticipate  the  payment  of  said  Construction  Bonds  or  Bond, 
by  the  sale  and  conveyance  of  said  land,  in  manner  aforesaid. 

FOURTH.  That  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part  shall  and  will 
cancel  and  discharge  each  and  every  Construction  Bond  or  obliga- 
tion, and  the  Interest  warrants  thereon,  which  they  may  receive  in 
payment  for  land,  and  as  part  or  the  whole  consideration  of  each 
Deed  or  sale,  by  defacing  the  seal  of  the  Corporation,  on  receipt 
thereof,  and  will  make,  or  cause  to  be  made,  on  or  upon  the  face 
thereof,  a  note  or  memorandum,  with  proper  description  of  the  land 
sold  and  conveyed,  with  the  date  of  the  conveyance,  for  which  the 
same  has  been  received  and  cancelled,  in  such  manner  and  form  as 
will  enable  the  parties  of  the  first  part  to  trace  and  follow  the  appro- 
priation of  all  the  said  Construction  Bonds. 

FIFTH.  That  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part,  shall  and  will 
set  forth  and  declare,  in  each  and  every  Deed  of  Conveyance,  the 
true  amount  of  the  purchase  money  of  the  land  and  premises  con- 
veyed, or  intended  to  be  conveyed  thereby,  and  the  part  thereof  for 
which  a  Bond  or  Bonds  may  have  been  received,  with  the  number 
and  amount  thereof,  and  also  the  sum  actually  paid  in  cash  for  the 
residue  and  remainder  of  said  purchase  money,  and  also  whenever 
a  Bond  or  Bonds  exceeding  the  amount  of  the  purchase  money  may 
have  been  received  in  payment  thereof,  the  amount  in  cash  actually 
refunded  to  the  purchaser,  or  holder  of  said  Bond  or  Bonds  for  such 
excess. 

SIXTH.  That  the  Interest  Warrants  of  said  Construction  Bonds 
or  Obligations,  becoming  due  and  payable  during  the  progress  of 
the  works  of  construction,  and  up  to,  and  inclusive  of  the  Warrants 
for  the  semi-annual  interest,  becoming  due  and  payable  next  after 
the  completion  and  actual  use  of  the  Main  Kailroad  and  Branches, 
shall  be  paid  from  and  out  of  the  proceeds  and  avails  of  the  said 
Construction  Bonds  or  obligations,  as  part  of  the  cost  of  said  Road 
and  Branches ;  but  that  all  Interest  Warrants  becoming  due  and 
payable  thereafter,  when  the  said  Railroad  and  Branches  shall  be 
put  in  operation,  shall  be  paid  from  and  out  of  the  receipts  and  in- 
come from  the  use  and  operation  of  the  Road  and  Branches,  unless 


67 

the  same  be  inadequate  thereto,  which  receipts  and  income  are  to 
be  appropriated  and  applied  to  the  following  purposes,  and  in  the 
following  manner : 

First.  To  the  payment  of  all  current  charges,  such  as  wages, 
repairs  of  Road,  rolling  stock,  &c.,  as  usual,  and  to  cover 
such  annual  depreciation  as  shall  maintain  the  rolling 
stock  equal  to  its  original  valuation,  and  to  such  additions 
as  may  be  made  thereto  from  capital  accounts,  but  not 
inclusive  of  new  and  additional  equippment,  except  on 
special  order  of  the  Directors,  after  full  provision  for  the 
payment  to  the  State,  and  for  the  interest :  including, 
however,  all  the  expenses  of  the  Incorporation,  which 
may  be  ordered  specially  as  a  current  charge. 

Second.  To  the  payment  of  the  State  duty  or  tax  as  imposed 
by  the  Charter : 

Third.  To  the  payment  of  the  full  amount  of  Interest 
Warrants,  as  they  semi-annually  mature  : 

Fourth.  To  the  payment  of  such  dividends  as  the  Directors 
may  order,  from  time  to  time,  to  be  paid  to  the  Stock- 
holders, or  to  such  other  appropriation  as  the  Directors 
may  order. 

SEVENTH.  That  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part  shall  and  will 
create,  set  aside,  and  preserve  an  Interest  Fund,  as  further  and 
collateral  security  for  the  punctual  payment  of  all  the  Interest 
Warrants  of  the  said  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations,  at  the 
times  when  the  same  severally  become  due,  and  payable,  in  manner 
following,  that  is  to  say  : 

First.  By  the  appropriation  to  this  Fund  of  any  profit 
which  may  be  realized  by  the  operation  of  such  parts  of 
the  Road  and  Branches  as  may  be  ready  for  use  before 
the  completion  of  the  whole  line  : 

Second.  By  the  appropriation  of  the  proceeds  of  sales  of 
two  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  acres  of  the  donated  lands, 
set  aside  for  this  purpose,  and  held  by  the  Trustees  free 
from  incumbrance : 


68 

Third.  By  the  appropriation  of  the  entire  amount  of  the 
present  Capital  of  One  Million  of  Dollars,  and  of  the 
proposed  increase  of  another  Million  of  Dollars,  and  of  all 
the  Instalments  called  in,  or  to  be  called  in,  from  time  to 
time,  upon  this  stock  ;  but  it  is  not  intended  by  this  ap- 
propriation to  exclude  the  further  issue  of  Capital  Stock, 
to  the  extent  limited  by  the  Charter,  for  any  purpose  to 
which  the  Directors  may  deem  it  judicious  to  make  such 
increase,  always  providing  against  any  preference  or 
benefit  to  such  increased  capital  over  the  stock  hereby 
appropriated. 

EIGHTH.  That  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part  shall  and  will 
manage  and  invest  the  Interest  Fund  in  such  manner  as  will  render 
the  same  at  all  times  readily  convertible  into  cash,  to  prevent  any 
delay  in  the  payment  of  the  Interest  Warrants,  should  the  provi- 
sions heretofore  made  and  declared  be  at  any  time  inadequate  for 
that  purpose,  and  for  the  payment  of  any  deficiency,  will  use  and 
appropriate  the  said  Interest  Fund,  in  the  following  manner  : 

First.  The  current  interest  of  the  Interest  Funds. 
Second.  The  invested  profits  of  partial  operation. 
Third.  The  proceeds  of  the  sales  of  lands. 

Fourth.  The  Capital  Stock  of  Two  Millions  of  Dollars,  as 
above  appropriated,  when  it  will  be  the  duty  of  the 
Directors,  in  case  the  Stock  be  not  full  paid,  to  require 
payment  of  instalments,  at  least  adequate  to  the  preser- 
vation of  the  integrity  of  the  Fund. 


tfjfs  Xirtrnttttrt  further  saatttussetf),  That 

the  said  parties  of  the  first  part,  for  themselves  and  their  successors, 
do  covenant  and  agree  to  pay  unto  the  holders  of  the  said  Construc- 
tion Bonds  or  obligations,  respectively,  the  said  principal  sums  of 
money  therein  respectively  mentioned  as  above,  and  as  expressed  in 
said  Bonds  or  obligations,  according  to  the  true  intent  and  meaning 
thereof.  And  that  if  default  shall  be  made  in  the  payment  of  the 
interest  upon  the  said  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations,  so  that  a 
sum  equal  to  one  year's  interest  on  the  whole  amount  of  the  said 


69 

Construction  Bonds  or  obligations  actually  issued,  and  secured  by 
these  presents,  or  if  default  shall  be  made  in  the  payment  of  the 
principal  of  said  Construction  Bonds  or  obligations,  that  then  and 
from  thenceforth  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  the  said  parties  of 
the  second  part  to  enter  into  and  upon  and  take  possession  of  all 
and  singular  the  said  Railroad  and  Branches,  and  all  the  property 
included,  or  intended  to  be  included  in  this  mortgage,  and  also  all 
the  Engines,  Tenders,  Cars,  Carriages,  Tools,  Machinery  and  Ma- 
terials, in  any  way  belonging  or  appertaining  to  said  Road  and 
Branches,  then  owned  by  said  parties  of  the  first  part,  in  the  same 
manner  as  if  the  same  had  actually  been  included  in  and  held  by 
this  Indenture  of  Mortgage  ;  and  that  the  said  parties  of  the  second 
part  shall  and  may,  by  themselves,  their  officers  and  agents,  take, 
receive  and  collect  the  income  and  profits  of  said  Railroad  and 
Branches,  first  applying  the  same  to  the  payment  and  discharge  of 
all  the  current  expenses  of  said  Railroad  and  Branches,  and  their 
needful  repairs,  and  next  to  the  payment  of  the  Annual  Tax  to  the 
State  of  Illinois,  as  provided  in  the  Act  of  Incorporation,  and  then 
to  the  payment  of  the  interest  and  principal  of  said  Construction 
Bonds  or  obligations,  in  such  manner  as  they  may  deem  proper. 


fttttf)0l%  That  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part,  hav- 
ing entered  into  full  possession  of  said  Railroad  and  Branches,  and 
all  the  equipments  thereto  belonging,  as  before  provided,  may  pro* 
ceed  to  sell  and  dispose  of  the  same,  and  all  and  singular  the  lands 
hereinbefore  particularly  set  forth  and  described,  remaining  unsold 
at  the  time  of  such  entry,  if  any  there  be,  and  also  each  and  every 
piece  or  parcel  of  land  and  premises,  parts  and  parcels  of  the  land 
granted  by  the  State  of  Illinois  to  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part 
conveyed  by  indenture  bearing  date  the  twenty  -fourth  day  of  March 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-one,  to  the  said  MORRIS 
KETCHUM,  JOHN  MOORE  and  SAMUEL  D.  LOCKWOOD,  as  Trustees 
and  which  have  not  been  and  are  not  intended  to  be  included  in  this 
Indenture  of  Mortgage,  which  may  then  remain  unsold,  and  in  the 
possession  of  the  said  Trustees,  in  the  same  manner  as  if  said  lands 
had  been  included  in  these  presents,  and  mortgaged  for  the  purposes 
herein  set  forth  and  declared  ;  and  may  make  such  sale  of  the  said 
premises,  each  and  every  of  them,  and  all  benefit  and  equity  of 
redemption  of  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part  therein,  at  Public 
Auction,  giving  reasonable  and  public  notice  of  the  time  and  place 
of  said  sale,  and  particularly  to  the  Governor  of  the  State  of  Illinois 


70 

for  the  time  being,  by  special  notice,  in  writing,  under  their  hands, 
and  to  be  personally  delivered  to  him,  and  as  the  Attorney  of  the 
said  parties  of  the  first  part  for  that  purpose,  by  these  presents,  duly 
authorized,  constituted  and  appointed,  to  make  and  deliver  to  the 
purchaser  or  purchasers  thereof  a  good  and  sufficient  Deed  or  Deeds 
of  Conveyance  in  the  law  for  the  same,  in  fee  simple,  and  good  and 
sufficient  Transfers  and  Assignments  of  such  personal  property,  and 
out  of  the  moneys  arising  from  such  sale  and  sales,  to  retain  the 
Principal  and  Interest  which  shall  then  be  due  on  said  Construction 
Bonds  or  obligations,  for  the  benefit  of  the  holders  thereof,  together 
with  the  costs  and  charges  of  advertisement  and  sale  of  said  pre- 
mises, rendering  the  overplus  of  the  purchase  money  (if  any  there 
shall  be,)  unto  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part,  their  successors 
and  assigns  :  which  sale  shall  forever  be  a  perpetual  bar,  both  in  law 
and  equity,  against  the  said  parties  of  the  first  part,  their  succes- 
sors and  assigns,  and  all  other  persons  claiming  or  to  claim  the 
premises,  or  any  part  thereof,  by,  from,  or  under  them,  or  either 
of  them. 

And  it  is  hereby  mutually  agreed,  by  and  between  the  parties  to 
these  presents,  that  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part,  their  heirs, 
executors  or  administrators,  shall  not  be  answerable  for  the  acts, 
omissions  or  defaults  of  each  other,  and  that  each  shall  be  responsi- 
ble for  gross  negligence  and  wilful  defaults  only. 


(t  IS  fttttfjer  aflmtr,  That  the  said  parties  of  the 
first  part,  their  successors,  and  all  and  every  person  or  persons 
whomsoever  lawfully  or  equitably  deriving  any  estate,  right,  title 
or  interest  of,  in  or  to  the  premises  hereinbefore  granted,  by,  from, 
under,  or  in  trust  for  them,  shall  and  will  at  any  time  or  times  here- 
after, upon  the  reasonable  request  and  at  the  proper  costs  and 
charges  in  the  law  of  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part,  their  heirs 
and  assigns,  make,  do  and  execute,  and  cause  to  be  made,  done  and 
executed  all  and  every  such  further  and  other  reasonable  acts,  con- 
veyances and  assurances  in  the  law  for  the  better  and  more  effectu- 
ally vesting  and  confirming  the  premises  hereby  granted  or  intended 
so  to  be,  in  and  to  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part,  their  heirs 
and  assigns  forever,  as  by  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part,  their 
heirs  or  assigns,  or  their  Counsel,  learned  in  the  law,  shall  be  rea- 
sonably devised,  advised  or  required. 


71 

IN  WITNESS  WHEREOF,  The  said  parties  of  the  first  part, 
THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD  COMPANY,  have 
caused  their  Corporate  Seal  to  be  hereunto  affixed,  and 
these  presents  to  be  signed  by  ROBERT  SCHUYLER,  their 
[  L.  S.]  President,  and  the  said  parties  of  the  second  part,  the 
said  MORRIS  KETCHUM,  JOHN  MOORE  and  SAMUEL  D. 
LOCKWOOD,  have  hereunto  set  their  hands  and  seals,  the 
day  and  year  first  above  written. 

THE  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAILROAD  COMPANY. 

ROBERT  SCHUYLER,    [  L  S.  1 

President 
Sealed  and  delivered  in  the  presence  of 

ATTEST, 

S.  ALOFSEN, 

Sec' y  Ill's.  Central  R.  R.  Co. 


STATE  OF  NEW-  YORK,  CITY  AND  COUNTY  OF  NEW-  YORK,  ss.  : 

3S0  tt  rememfceretr,  That  on  this  twenty-third  day  of  June, 
A.D.,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty  -two,  before  me,  William 
McMurray,  a  Commissioner,  residing  in  said  City  and  County,  duly 
commissioned  by  the  Governor  of  Illinois  to  take  acknowledgment 
and  proof  of  deeds  and  other  instruments  in  writing,  under  seal,  to 
be  used  or  recorded  in  said  State  of  Illinois,  personally  came 
Robert  Schuyler,  President  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Com- 
pany, to  me  known,  who  being  by  me  duly  sworn,  did  depose  and 
say  :  that  he  resides  in  the  City  and  County  of  New-  York,  that  he 
is  the  President  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company  ;  that 
he  knows  the  Corporate  Seal  of  said  Company  ;  that  the  seal  affix- 
ed to  the  within  conveyance,  is  the  Corporate  Seal  of  said  Com- 
pany, and  that  he  signed  his  name  thereto,  by  like  order,  as 
President  of  said  Company. 


Kll  tottnCSS  toijemf,    I  have  hereunto  set    my 
[  L.  S.  ]  hand  and  official  seal,  the  day  and  year  aforesaid,  at  my 
office,  No.  44  Wall-street,  in  the  City  of  New-  York. 

(Signed)  WILLIAM  McMURRAY, 

Commissioner,  fyc.,  of  the  State  of  Illinois, 

for  the  City  of  New-  York. 


72 


KUinois  Central  liaci  Itoair, 

ITS   POSITION   AND   PROSPECTS 


For  the  purpose  of  aiding  the  construction  of  "  a  Railroad 
from  the  southern  terminus  of  the  Illinois  and  Michigan 
Canal  to  a  point  at  or  near  the  junction  of  the  Ohio  and 
Mississippi  Rivers,  with  a  Branch  of  the  same  to  Chicago, 
on  Lake  Michigan,  and  another  via.  the  town  of  Galena  to 
Dubuque,  in  the  State  of  Iowa,"  the  Congress  of  the  United 
States,  by  an  Act,  approved  September  20, 1850,  granted  to 
the  State  of  Illinois, 

1st.  The  right  of  way  200  feet  wide,  through  the  public 
lands,  arid  of  taking  necessary  materials  of  earth,  stone, 
lumber,  &c. 

2d.  Every  alternate  section  of  land,  designated  by  even 
numbers  for  six  sections  in  width  on  each  side  of  said  Road 
and  Branches,  or  if  any  such  have  been  sold,  so  much  land 
most  contiguous  to  such  sections  and  not  exceeding  fifteen 
miles  from  the  line  of  the  Road  as  shall  be  equal  to  those 
sold. 

By  an  Act  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  pass-- 
ed  the  present  year,  Robert  Schuyler.  George  Griswold, 
Gouverneur  Morris,  Franklin  Haven,  David  A.  Neal, 
Robert  Rantoul,  Jun.,  Jonathan  Sturges,  Thomas  W.  Lud- 
low,  JohnF.A.  Sandford,  Henry  Grinnell,  William  H.  Aspin- 
wall,  Leroy  M.Wiley  and  Joseph  W.  Alsop,  and  such  persons 
as  shall  hereafter  become  Stockholders,  were  created  a  body 
politic  and  corporate,  under  the  name  of  the  Illinois  Central 
Railroad  Company,  with  all  necessary  powers  and  privileges 


73 

for  constructing  and  maintaining  the  Railroad  and  Branches, 
contemplated  in  the  Act  of  Congress  aforesaid,  and  for  this 
purpose,  the  right  of  way,  and  all  the  lands  that  may  be 
selected  along  the  line  of  said  Road  and  Branches  in  the 
State,  under  the  grant  in  said  Act,  together  with  a  right  of 
way  over  and  through  lands  belonging  to  the  State,  and  all 
the  rights  and  materials  heretofore  acquired  by  the  State 
for  the  same  objects,  are  ceded  and  granted  to  said  Corpo- 
ration, on  condition  that  such  Road  shall  be  built  in  four, 
and  said  Branches  in  six  years,  and  that  when  built  and  in 
operation,  seven  per  cent,  of  the  gross  income  shall  be  paid 
to  the  State  in  lieu  of  all  taxes  levied  for  State  purposes. 
The  lands  thus  granted  are  to  be  placed  in  the  hands  of 
Trustees,  three-fourths  for  the  security  of  any  Bonds  issued 
by  the  Company,  and  one-fourth  to  meet  any  deficiency 
from  other  sources,  for  the  payment  of  interest,  or  contin- 
gencies. The  Capital  Stock  is  fixed  by  the  Act,  at  one 
million  of  dollars,  which  may  be  increased  at  any  time  to 
an  amount  not  exceeding  the  entire  expenditure  on  account 
of  the  Road. 

The  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company  has  been  organiz- 
ed, the  Capital  Stock  subscribed,  and  twenty  per  cent,  of  it 
paid  in  ;  all  the  conditions  of  the  Charter  have  been  com- 
plied with,  and  all  the  deeds,  grants  and  trusts  executed. 
Engineers  are  employed  in  selecting  a  route  and  the  dona- 
ted lands,  which  will  amount  to  3840  acres  for  each  mile  of 
road,  or  in  the  aggregate,  (the  Road  and  Branches  being 
assumed  at  670  miles)  2,572,800  acres. 

It  is  proposed  to  meet  the  cost  of  construction  by  the 
issue  of  Bonds,  payable  in  1875,  bearing  interest  not  exceed- 
ing seven  per  cent.  The  security  for  the  principal  will  be 
— 1st,  the  Road  itself ;  and  2d,  two  million  acres  of  the  do- 
nated lands.  The  security  for  the  interest  will  be  first,  the 
Capital  Stock  ;  2d,  the  Income  of  the  Road ;  3d,  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  thousand  acres  of  the  land  specially  appro- 
priated. 


74 

The  lands  will  be  valued  at  prices  that  will  more  than 
cover  any  possible  amount  required  for  construction,  but 
which,  it  is  believed,  will  be  fully  realized  before  the  period 
of  the  maturity  of  the  Bonds.  These  Bonds  may,  at  any 
time,  be  surrendered  and  any  land  on  sale  claimed  in  lieu 
of  them  at  the  appraisement.  None  of  the  lands  appropri- 
ated for  their  security,  can  be  disposed  of,  except  on  the 
simultaneous  surrender  or  payment  of  Bonds  to  an  amount 
equal  to  their  appraisal.  That  appraisal  of  the  two  millions 
of  acres  mortgaged  for  their  security,  that  is,  the  price  un- 
der which  they  will  not  be  sold,  and  to  which  it  is  expected 
they  will  advance  at  some  time  previous  to  1875,  will  be  so 
arranged,  as  soon  as  they  are  selected  and  their  character 
known,  as  to  produce  the  following  averages. 

400,000  acres  ordinary  agricultural  lands  $6,  $2,400,000 

1,200,000  acres  good  agricultural  lands  $10,  -  12,000,000 

300,000  acres  superior  agricultural  lands  $15,  4,500,000 

100,000  acres  town  sites,  mineral  lands  $25,    2,500,000 


2,000,000  $21,400,000 

To  enable  the  Company  to  meet  the  demand  for  these 
lands  at  any  time,  short  of  the  period  of  the  maturity  of  the 
Bonds,  the  right  to  anticipate  their  payment  has  been  re- 
served, but  only  on  condition  of  giving  one  hundred  and 
twenty  dollars  for  every  hundred  so  taken  up. 

During  the  time  occupied  in  the  construction  of  the  Road, 
the  interest  on  the  outlay  will  be  included  in  its  cost.  Im- 
mediately on  its  completion,  the  Income,  after  paying  cur- 
rent expenses  and  State  tax,  will  be  of  course  applied  to 
this  object.  If  it  should  not,  at  first,  be  sufficient,  the 
earnings  from  any  partial  use  of  the  road,  before  its  entire 
completion,  the  whole  capital  stock  of  the  Company,  and  the 
entire  proceeds  of  sales  of  250,000  acres  of  land  set  aside 
for  this  purpose,  will  form  a  fund  that  will  be  ample  under 
any  contingency. 


75 

The  basis  of  this  enterprise  is  founded  both  on  National 
and  State  Legislation.  The  powers  delegated  are  ample, 
the  titles  are  perfect.  It  is  of  its  merits  as  a  public  work, 
of  its  capabilities  as  a  great  thoroughfare,  of  its  success  as 
a  commercial  operation,  and  its  consequent  estimation  as  a 
medium  of  investment,  that  I  now  propose  to  make  some 
remarks. 

If  to  make  two  blades  of  grass  grow  where  but  one  grew 
before,  be  worthy  the  high  commendation  of  the  philosopher 
and  patriot,  it  will  not  be  deemed  an  act  altogether  unim- 
portant or  useless  to  the  country  to  open  to  the  approach  of 
industry,  millions  of  acres  of  the  most  fertile  soil  the  sun 
ever  shone  upon,  and  to  make  available  at  once,  the  alluvial 
deposites  of  countless  ages.  An  enterprise  that  will  thus 
bring  into  use  wealth  heretofore  buried,  that  will  lighten  the 
burthen,  while  it  will  increase  the  rewards  of  labor,  that  will 
add  to  the  resources  of  the  poor,  and  offer  new  and  valuable 
investments  to  the  rich,  will  hardly  want  friends,  when  such 
pretensions  shall  be  established.  The  construction  of  a 
Railroad  traversing  in  its  whole  length  the  State  of  Illinois 
from  Cairo,  where  the  waters  of  the  Mississippi  and  the 
Ohio  meet,  bearing  on  their  surface  the  various  productions 
of  the  North  and  the  South,  of  the  East  and  the  West,  to 
the  vast  mineral  regions  of  Galena  in  the  North  West,  and 
to  Chicago,  the  emporium  of  the  commerce  of  the  great 
Lakes  at  the  North  East,  will,  it  is  believed,  accomplish 
these  objects.  Its  practicability,  with  the  means  at  the  dis- 
posal of  its  projectors  and  friends,  is  an  important  considera- 
tion. This,  it  is  evident,  must  mainly  depend  on  the  ulti- 
mate value  of  the  work  when  completed,  and  of  the  effect  on 
the  property  which  forms  the  basis  of  all  its  financial 
operations.  The  value  of  the  work  may  be  estimated  by  the 
use  that  can  be  made  of  it,  or  rather  by  the  extent  of  pro- 
duction to  which  the  ability  to  use  it  will  give  birth.  The 
sources  of  income  will  be  found, 

1st.  In  the  produce  of  the  mines  and  forests,  for  these 
furnish  articles  ready  for  use,  and  of  general  consumption 
everywhere. 


76 

2d.  In  the  produce  of  the  soil,  which  requires  easy  and 
cheap  transportation  to  induce  as  much  as  it  does  sunshine 
and  rain,  to  perfect  its  cultivation. 

3d.  In  the  supplies  requisite  to  those  who  may  be  en- 
gaged in  occupations  connected  with  or  incident  to  the  two 
abovenamed  branches  of  business. 

4th.  In  the  movements  of  the  same  persons  for  purposes 
of  business  or  pleasure. 

5th.  In  the  transit  of  persons  and  goods  between  points 
beyond  the  limits  of  the  State,  for  which  the  route  will  afford 
the  most  convenient  and  expeditious  passage. 

6th.  In  transportation  of  mails  and  expresses,  and  in  other 
miscellaneous  operations. 

Having  settled  these  points  with  as  much  precision  as 
the  nature  of  the  case  admits,  it  will  be  easy  to  estimate  the 
value  of  the  Road  as  an  investment,  and  consequently  as  a 
security  per  se  for  the  means  necessary  to  construct  it.  If 
it  cannot  be  shown  that  it  will  yield  some  income  beyond  its 
current  expenses,  no  one  will  probably  take  the  trouble  to 
carry  on  the  enterprise,  and  consequently  no  means  will  be 
required  for  its  construction.  If,  therefore,  these  means 
are  sought,  it  will  be  proof  that  its  projectors  believe  it  will 
be  of  some  intrinsic  value.  It  may  be  more  or  less,  or  they 
may  be  altogether  mistaken. 

If  the  latter  be  not  the  case,  then  the  property  which  they 
receive  for  carrying  out  the  plan,  must  also  be  worth  some- 
thing. How  much,  will  depend  on  the  demand  for  it,  and 
the  demand  will  be  proportionate  to  the  number  of  persons 
who  may  be  induced,  by  the  prospect  of  success,  to  cluster 
about  it.  We  come  back  then  to  the  great  question  of 
population.  In  estimating  what  it  may  be  some  four  or  five 
or  six  years  hence,  in  the  region  to  be  traversed  by  this  or 
any  other  Road,  we  have  the  same  lights  to  guide  us  that 
are  always  used  by  prudent  men  in  their  daily  operations. 


77 

The  merchant  emharks  in  a  well  known  traffic,  with  con- 
fidence, because  he  knows  the  number  and  wants  of  his 
customers.  The  manufacturer  trusts,  without  question,  the 
most  valuable  material  in  the  hands  of  the  operative,  be- 
cause he  believes,  that  in  its  new  form  it  will  have  acquired 
a  new  value,  from  the  fact  that  there  are  people  whose  com- 
forts will  be  increased  by  its  use.  The  farmer  casts  his 
seed  into  the  ground,  with  little  doubt  of  eventful  re-pay- 
ment, not  only  in  the  crops  which  must  ensue,  but  in  his 
ability  to  exchange  them  for  other  things  of  which  he  has 
more  need.  So,  if  we  offer  a  "richer  soil  and  greater  facili- 
ties for  disposing  of  its  produce,  than  can  be  found  elsewhere, 
we  may  fairly  calculate  on  drawing  to  it  a  portion  of  the 
vast  body  of  men  that  are  always  in  motion,  seeking  rest, 
and  competence  and  wealth,  and  just  in  proportion  as  are 
the  inducements,  will  be  the  rapidity  of  its  settlement  and 
the  value  of  the  property.  How  rapid  it  will  be,  and  how 
great  the  appreciation,  we  can  judge  when  we  know  the 
whole  case  from  analogy  and  experience.  These  are  the  true 
prophets.  No  man  can  be  called  speculative  in  the  oppro- 
brious sense  of  the  term,  that  bases  his  operations  on  these 
as  a  foundation,  and  legitimately  forms  his  opinions,  and 
acts  on  them,  from  an  accurate  knowledge  of  facts  and  of 
their  ordinary  effects.  In  doing  this,  however,  we  should 
weigh  carefully  all  the  conflicting  circumstances,  give  no 
heed  to  the  dictates  of  interest  or  the  fascinations  of  a 
favorite  theory.  On  the  contrary,  we  should  always  as- 
sume that  there  will  be  difficulties  we  have  not  discovered, 
and  some  points  on  which  AVC  have  been  deceived  by  false 
information  or  misled  by  specious  pretensions. 

In  presenting  the  following  views  and  estimates,  I  have 
not  only  endeavored  to  keep  within  these  rules,  but  to  make 
more  than  ample  allowance  for  any  possible  contingency. 

The  geographical  character  of  the  State  of  Illinois  has 
not  been  favorable  to  a  rapid  developement  of  its  resources. 
The  Mississippi  forms  its  entire  western  boundary,  and  the 
Ohio  and  Wabash,  its  southern  and  eastern.  It  is  intersect- 


78 

ed  but  by  one  navigable  river,  the  Illinois.  It  has  but  one 
harbor  on  the  Lakes,  Chicago.  A  large  portion  of  the  State 
is  without  wood.  A  much  larger  portion  of  it  is  without 
roads,  or  the  means  of  making  them.  Its  streams  are  the 
only  practicable  routes  for  heavy  transportation,  and  they 
are  frozen  in  winter,  and  almost  dry  in  summer. 

Its  financial  position  has  not  been,  for  several  years  past, 
of  such  a  character  as  to  invite  an  increase  of  population. 
With  a  view  to  counteract  the  actual  disadvantages  men- 
tioned, an  extensive  system  of  internal  improvement  was 
very  early  projected  by  the  State  Government,  but  the  only 
results  were  unfinished  works,  enormous  debts  and  heavy 
taxation. 

Such,  however,  is  the  extraordinary  richness  of  its  soil, 
the  ease  with  which  it  is  cultivated,  and  the  enormous  re- 
turns it  yields  for  the  labor  bestowed  upon  it,  that  the  num- 
ber of  its  inhabitants  has  been  steadily  progressive,  and 
has  now  reached  between  8  and  900,000,  and  fifteen  to  the 
square  mile.  The  adverse  circumstances  which  have  re- 
tarded its  prosperity  no  longer  operate  to  the  same  extent, 
and  will  soon  disappear  altogether.  Her  Canal  is  comple- 
ted, her  debt  in  process  of  liquidation,  and  her  finances 
rapidly  assuming  a  position  that  will  no  longer  require  the 
imposition  of  heavy  taxes  to  sustain  her  credit  and  restore 
her  reputation.  But  beyond  anything  else,  the  construction 
of  Railroads  will,  in  the  course  of  four  or  five  years  do  more 
for  Illinois,  than  the  discovery  of  its  sierras  of  gold  has  done 
for  California.  The  National  Government  has  acted  with 
a  true  regard  to  its  own  interests,  in  passing  the  Act  grant- 
ing to  the  States  of  Illinois,  Mississippi  and  Alabama, 
alternate  sections  of  the  public  lands,  twelve  miles  in  width, 
whenever  and  wherever  they  would  construct  a  Railroad 
that  should  commence  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  terminate 
at  the  Lakes,  and  on  the  head  waters  of  the  Mississippi. 
The  portion  allotted  to  Illinois,  in  this  work,  extends  from 
Cairo,  at  the  junction  of  the  Mississippi  and  Ohio  Rivers, 
to  Chicago,  on  its  north-eastern,  and  to  Galena  on  its  north- 
western boundary. 


79 

The  peculiar  formation  of  this  tract  of  country,  makes 
it,  perhaps,  more  than  any  other  in  the  world,  the  place  for 
the  location  of  Railroads.  Its  topographical  character  is 
extremely  favorable  to  their  construction.  On  its  vast 
prairies  the  levels  are  already  formed.  The  embankments 
and  ditches  may  be  made  by  turning  the  sods  from  the 
sides  to  the  centre.  There  are  but  few  streams  to  cross,  no 
rocks  to  blast,  no  mountains  to  perforate,  and  no  valuable 
estates  through  which  to  purchase  at  enormous  rates,  the 
right  of  way.  The  difficulties  are  all  of  an  inferior  grade. 
The  want  of  material  at  hand  for  the  the  purposes  of  mason- 
ry, construction  of  bridges,  and  ballasting  the  Road  way, 
will  be  obviated  by  laying  the  track  on  the  banks  made  from 
the  side  drains,  and  transporting  on  it  the  rock,  wood  and 
gravel,  required,  and  which,  from  the  great  distance  between 
the  points  where  they  are  found  and  where  they  are  want- 
ed, could  be  done  in  no  other  way.  The  very  low  cost  of 
Railroads  already  completed  in  Illinois,  fully  sustain  the 
fact  of  the  great  facilities  which  the  nature  of  the  country 
affords  for  their  construction.  It  is  probable  they  can  be 
built  at  less  cost  here  than  in  any  other  part  of  the  globe. 
It  is  certain  they  will  do  comparatively  more  good.  Any 
where  they  are  better  than  rivers.  Every  where  they 
increase  wealth  by  facilitating  the  means  of  acquiring  it. 
But  here  they  open  access  to  a  country  through  which  no 
river  runs,  and  from  which  no  river  can  now  be  reached. 
They  develope  resources  that  must  otherwise  have  remained 
hidden  from  human  sight,  and  beyond  the  grasp  of  human 
hands. 

Aware  of  the  importance  of  introducing  this  engine  of 
prosperity  into  their  State  with  the  least  possible  delay, 
the  Legislature  of  Illinois  wisely  decided  to  transfer  the 
boon  offered  by  the  General  Government,  to  any  responsi- 
ble party  that  would  undertake  the  enterprise,  reserving  to 
itself  a  fair  share  of  the  profits  to  be  derived  from  it,  and 
tendering  to  it  all  the  protection  which  the  broad  seal  of 
the  State,  and  the  solemnity  of  a  contract  capable  of  being 
enforced  in  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  could 


80 

give.  The  original  gift  and  its  subsequent  transfer  will,  we 
trust,  prove  to  be  in  fact,  a  deed  of  benificence,  blessing  those 
who  gave  and  those  who  received  it. 

The  Association,  to  whom  the  grant  has  been  made  by 
the  State  of  Illinois,  have  received  all  waters,  land,  mate- 
rials, privileges,  rights  of  way,  gradings,  embankments, 
surveys,  property,  profiles  and  papers,  belonging  to  the 
State,  and  necessary  for  the  purpose  of  constructing  the 
Road,  free  of  cost  and  expense,  subject  to  their  control  and 
for  their  use  forever. 

The  Road  to  be  built  is  restricted  only  to  within  seven- 
teen miles  each  side  of  a  straight  line  from  the  city  of  Cairo 
to  the  Southern  terminus  of  the  Illinois  Canal,  which  line 
is  nearly  coincident  with  the  third  principal  meridian,  thence 
a  branch  by  any  convenient  route  to  Galena.  From  a 
point  in  about  the  latitude  of  °39.30  North  latitude,  will 
diverge  the  branch  to  be  built  to  Chicago.  The  Main  Line 
to  be  completed  in  four  years,  the  Branches  in  six.  No 
taxes  to  be  levied  until  the  road  is  completed  ;  then  in  lieu 
of  all  other  taxes  the  Company  are  to  pay  seven  per  cent, 
of  the  gross  earnings  of  the  Road,  as  already  stated.  The 
donated  lands  consist  of  every  alternate  section  designated 
by  even  numbers,  for  six  sections  in  width  on  each  side  of 
the  Road  as  it  may  be  located,  or  if  any  of  these  have  been 
sold,  then  an  equal  quantity  may  be  taken,  from  contiguous 
tiers  of  sections  anywhere  within  fifteen  miles  of  the  line. 

Under  this  grant,  the  Road  will  be  located  through  the 
most  fertile  praries,  the  most  valuable  forests,  and  the 
richest  mineral  lands  in  the  State ;  but  these  have  been 
neglected  by  settlers  in  consequence  of  the  utter  impossi- 
bility of  getting  their  productions  to  market.  Until  the 
Illinois  Central  Rail  Road  Company  shall  have  selected 
their  lands,  the  Books  of  the  General  Land  Office  in  Wash- 
ington are  closed  against  entries  in  this  region,  and  when 
opened,  the  price  is  to  be  double  that  of  the  other  lands. 
The  Company  are,  therefore,  fully  protected.  They  have 


81 

organized  under  their  charter,  all  the  Deeds  and  necessary 
documents  have  been  executed  by  the  Governor  of  the  State, 
the  Trustees,  and  its  own  officers.  The  whole  stock  has 
been  taken,  and  twenty  per  cent,  been  paid  in,  in  cash,  and 
the  same  deposited  with  the  State  Treasurer  of  Illinois,  to 
be  returned  on  completion  of  fifty  miles  of  the  Road. 
Robert  Schuyler,  Esq.,  of  New-York,  a  gentleman  more 
conversant  with  and  more  largely  interested  in  Rail  Roads 
than  any  other  person  on  the  Western  Continent,  has  been 
chosen  President,  and  Morris  Ketchum,  Esq.,  of  the  very 
wealthy  and  well  known  house  of  Ketchum,  Rogers  & 
Bement,  Treasurer  of  the  Association.  R.  B.  Mason,  Esq., 
of  the  Ne^w-York  and  New  Haven  Rail  Road,  has  been 
appointed  Chief,  and  he  has  engaged  seven  resident  and  a 
large  corps  of  assistant  Engineers,  who  have  proceeded  to 
Illinois  to  locate  the  Road  and  select  the  donated  lands. 
The  system  devised  for  procuring  the  means  of  building  this 
road  by  the  sale  of  Bonds,  and  for  the  payment  of  them 
when  or  before  they  become  due,  is  unique  in  its  character 
and  provisions.  It  is  believed  to  afford  not  simply  entire 
security  for  the  current  interest  and  redemption  at  maturity, 
but  a  strong  probability  of  a  great  advance  in  value,  in 
consequence  of  the  peculiar  conditions  annexed  to  the  sale 
of  the  property  which  forms  a  branch  of  the  collateral 
security  embraced  in  the  plan. 

The  length  of  the  Road  and  Branches  will  probably  not 
be  less  than  670  miles,  which  will  entitle  the  Company,  as 
before  stated,  to  an  aggregate  donation  of  2,572,800  acres. 
No  estimate  of  its  cost  has  been  attempted,  for  no  particular 
survey  of  the  whole  route  has  yet  been  made.  It  is  said  that 
$15,000  per  mile  is  the  highest  that  any  Road  (allowing 
for  heavy  T  rail,)  has  as  yet  cost  in  Illinois  ;  $20,000  per 
mile  would  require  about  $14,000,000.  It  is  intended  to 
use  the  strictest  economy,  consistent  with  the  construction 
of  a  good,  substantial  Road.  It  is  also  intended  to  pay  for 
every  thing  with  cash.  There  are  various  reasons  besides 
for  believing  that  this  Road  will  be  built  for  compara- 
tively little  money ;  but  as  ample  security  will  be 


82 

offered  for  any  possible  sum  that  may  be  required  it  is 
unnecessary  in  this  connection  to  go  into  any  detail  on  that 
subject. 

The  Bonds  will  be  dated  April  1,  1851,  with  Coupons 
attached,  at  rate  of  interest  to  be  hereafter  agreed  on,  not 
exceeding  seven  per  cent.  It  is  desirable  to  negotiate  at 
once,  (if  practicable,)  for  enough  to  ensure  the  building  of 
the  Road,  but  to  be  paid  by  instalments  as  wanted. 

The  first  security  for  these  Bonds  that  will  be  offered, 
will  be  the  road  itself.  To  render  this  satisfactory,  it  must 
be  shown  with  a  reasonable  degree  of  certainty,  that  it  will 
pay  its  current  expenses,  taxes  and  interest  on  the  capital 
invested.  There  will  be  within  fifteen  miles  of  the  line  of 
this  Road,  upwards  of  12,000,000  acres  of  land.  It  is 
adapted  to  the  cultivation  of  any  kind  of  grain,  but 
particularly  Indian  corn,  of  which  it  is  said  it  produces  60 
a  70  bushels  to  the  acre,  and  to  be  inexhaustible.  There 
are  at  various  points  on  the  Road,  large  quantities  of  bitu- 
minous coal.  There  is  one  field  of  peculiarly  good  quality 
near  Danville,  about  120  miles  from  Chicago,  from  which 
all  the  shore  towns  and  steamers  of  Lake  Michigan  may  be 
supplied.  Another,  50  miles  from  Cairo,  which  may  supply 
the  demand  for  steamboats,  both  on  the  Ohio  and  Missis- 
sippi. A  large  part  of  Illinois,  especially  that  distant  from 
the  banks  of  the  rivers,  is  destitute  of  forests.  Chicago  is 
the  great  depot  for  the  lumber  of  both  Michigan  and 
Wisconsin,  and  it  can  always  be  obtained  here  in  any 
quantities  at  low  prices.  Cairo  is  at  the  head  of  navigation 
for  the  large  steamers  of  the  Lower  Mississippi,  and  the 
place  of  transhipment  from  them  to  the  vessels  of  lighter 
draft,  and  vice  versa,  both  of  passengers  and  freight. 
Frequently  the  rivers  above  are  impeded  with  ice,  swollen 
from  freshets  or  impassible  for  want  of  water.  The  Illinois 
Central  Rail  Road  will  furnish  a  rapid  communication  with 
and  through  the  central,  most  fertile  and  most  healthy 
portions  of  the  State.  Its  means  of  transportation  will  be 
ample,  uninterrupted  and  safe.  It  will  be  completed 


83 

probably  in  four  years  from  the  time  of  its  active  commence- 
ment. 

One  mode  of  increasing  the  population  of  the  country 
will  be  the  mass  of  laborers  that  must  be  introduced  to  build 
the  Road.  The  amount  paid  to  workmen  alone,  employed 
in  grading,  will  not  probably  be  less,  on  an  average,  than 
§6000  per  mile.  Assuming  the  wages  at  $1  per  day,  and 
the  road  666f  miles  long,  we  have  4,000,000  days'  work — or 
divided  among  four  years,  1,000,000  per  annum — and  sup- 
posing 250  working  days  in  the  year,  we  require  4000  men 
to  be  constantly  at  work.  With  the  prospect  of  so  long  a  job, 
large  numbers  of  them  will  have  their  families  with  them,  and 
thus  add  at  least  50  per  cent,  to  the  number.  With  them 
will  naturally  be  brought  those  who  look  for  profit  in 
supplying  them.  An  immediate  market  will  be  introduced 
for  small  farmers  all  along  the  line,  who  will  clear  their 
land  in  a  single  year  from  the  disposal  of  their  surplus 
produce.  Three-fourths  of  the  money  expended  in  con- 
structing the  roadj'will  remain  in  the  country,  or  be  remitted 
to  Washington,  in  payment  for  Government  lands.  Settlers 
will  thus  have  an  unprecedented  opportunity  to  make 
themselves  not  only  owners  of  the  soil,  but  establish  them- 
selves with  comfort  and  independence  for  life.  This  will 
arrest  the  tide  of  immigration  at  this  point.  It  will  be 
known  throughout  Europe,  as  the  spot  where  labor  is  in 
demand,  wages  good,  pay  prompt,  living  cheap,  and  farms 
paid  for  from  the  profits  of  a  single  crop.  By  these  means 
this  strip  of  thirty  miles  in  width,  or  parcel  of  20,000  square 
miles  of  country,  will  soon  become  spotted  with  an  indus- 
trious population. 

But  these  will  not  be  the  only  means,  nor  agriculture  the 
only  inducement  for  drawing  settlers  to  this  region.  Where 
the  ground  produces  so  exuberantly,  the  greater  part 
of  its  productions  must  find  a  foreign  market.  The  corn 
grown  by  the  Irish  immigrant,  now  raised  to  the  dignity 
of  landed  proprietor,  will  go  to  feed  his  relatives  and  friends 
in  the  old  country.  The  hemp  rotted  in  the  waters  of  the 
Illinois  and  Kaskaskias,  already  almost  the  only  kind  used 


84 

in  the  Eastern  States,  will  meet  and  compete  with,  and  put 
down  the  product  of  the  Serf  labor  of  Russia,  in  the  London 
market.  The  heef,  pork  and  lard  of  the  Prarie,  will  not 
only  feed  all  the  inhabitants  between  the  Mississippi  and 
the  Atlantic  coast,  but  will  crowd,  more  than  ever,  the  docks 
and  rise  in  higher  piles  on  the  quays  of  Liverpool.  The 
immense  flocks,  for  which  this  portion  of  the  country  is 
already  becoming  celebrated,  will  supply  the  mills  that  are 
found  on  every  stream  in  New  England,  at  a  cheaper  rate, 
and  with  a  better  article,  than  that  for  which  they  have  till 
latterly  sent  and  still  do  to  some  extent  send  their  ships  to 
gather  in  the  extreme  corners  of  the  earth.  The  returns 
for  these  substantial  items  of  food  and  raiment  must  consist 
of  all  the  variety  of  comfort  and  luxuries  which  the  hard 
working  laborer  requires,  and  which  the  prosperous  farmer 
will  have.  This  interchange  of  commodities  must  employ 
many  heads  and  many  hands.  It  will  cause  the  establish- 
ment of  stores,  villages,  towns  and  cities.  These  will  be 
connected  by  earth  roads,  and  plank  roads  and  rail  roads. 
Churches  and  schools  will  spring  up  in  ^very  direction.  It 
will  be  the  reverse  of  the  country  of  the  poet,  "where 
wealth  accumulates  and  men  decay."  Men  grow  happier 
and  better  where  wealth  increases  from  their  own  exertions, 
where  industry  is  sure  to  give  them  competence  and  enter- 
prise will  secure  abundance. 

But  for  our  present  purpose,  these  pictures,  which  are 
too  true  to  nature  in  our  Western  country  to  be  considered 
anything  more  speculative  than  is  the  plan  of  the  architect, 
who  has  his  materials  ready  purchased,  and  his  contracts 
ready  drawn,  these  may  be  entirely  dispensed  with,  we 
may,  if  we  can,  crowd  ourselves  down  to  the  idea  that  this 
region,  now  about  to  be  emancipated  from  its  native  wildness, 
will  crawl  along,  so  that  at  the  end  of  four  or  five  years,  it 
will  have  attained  a  population  no  greater  than  the  present 
average  of  the  whole  State.  Even  then  there  will  be 
dependent  on  this  road  for  their  supplies,  and  for  the  sale 
of  their  produce,  at  least  300,000  persons,  each  one  of  whom 
will  be  located  somewhere  within  18  miles  of  a  Station 
on  the  Illinois  Central  Rail  Road. 


85 

Under  the  circumstances  and  with  the  advantages  that 
have  been  thus  alluded  to,  can  there  be  a  doubt  that  the 
Road  will  be  sustained  and  pay,  even  the  first  year  it  may 
be  put  in  operation,  a  liberal  income  on  its  cost  ?  It  is 
hard  to  conceive  a  state  of  things  in  which  such  must  not 
be  the  case.  As  this  however  is  an  important  matter,  it 
may  be  as  well  to  descend  to  particulars,  and  in  doing  so,  I 
will  assume  there  is  to  be  no  progress,  no  incentive,  no 
enterprise ;  that  no  spirit  is  to  be  awakened,  no  impulse 
given  by  the  outlay  of  millions  of  money,  and  no  advantage 
taken  of  the  millions  of  acres  of  the  richest  soil  in  the 
world,  located  in  the  absolute  centre  of  the  United  States, 
which  will  be  thrown  before  the  thousands  that  are  daily 
flocking  to  these  shores  for  the  very  purpose  of  gaming  a 
foothold  and  freehold  in  our  country.  The  calculations  will 
be  based  simply  on  what  would  now  be  the  business  of  the 
Road,  if  it  were  completed,  and  supposing  it  to  have  the 
advantage  of  only  the  present  average  density  of  population 
in  the  State  and  conceding  to  its  industry  but  the  least 
probable  amount  of  productiveness. 

The  first  source  of  income  to  this  Road,  it  has  been  already 
stated,  would  be  found  in  the  produce  of  the  mines  and 
forests,  in  other  words  in  the  transportation  of  coal  and 
lumber.  Coal  of  a  bituminous  character  is  found  in  many 
places  in  Illinois.  Two  fields  of  very  superior  quality  will 
be  found  intersected  by  this  Road  or  its  Chicago  Branch, 
one  about  50  miles  from  Cairo,  the  other  120  miles  from 
Chicago.  It  is  not  probable  that  any  considerable  quantities 
will  be  exported  from  Cairo,  because  the  coal  from  the  Ohio 
being  contiguous  to  its  banks,  can  be  delivered  on  shipboard 
for  less  money.  It  will,  however,  be  wanted  by  every 
steamboat  that  touches  at  that  place,  and  the  convenience 
and  facility  with  which  it  may  be  furnished  from  the  Road, 
will  ensure  that  custom.  In  1850,  it  is  stated  that  1,500 
arrival  of  steamboats  were  chronicled  at  Cairo.  These 
boats  require  from  5  to  30  tons  of  coal  or  an  equivalent  in 
other  fuel  every  day  they  are  under  steam.  I  am  not  well 

advised  on  this  subject,  but  suppose  a  supply  to  each  boat 
9 


86 

on  an  average  of  three  days  or  fifty  tons,  would  be  consid- 
ered small.  This,  however,  would  require  an  import  of 
75,000  tons  per  annum,  for  this  sole  object.  How  much 
would  be  carried  north  for  the  supply  of  the  inhabitants  is 
still  more  problematical.  From  the  mines,  near  Danville, 
Chicago,  and  all  the  towns  on  Lake  Michigan,  would  draw 
their  supplies  of  coal  to  more  advantage  than  from  any  other 
source.  So,  also,  could  all  the  steamers  navigating  that 
Lake.  It  will  surely  be  safe  to  estimate  all  this  at  75,000 
tons  more.  The  average  transportation  will  be  over  75 
miles,  and  the  lowest  rate  would  be  $1|-  per  ton,  which 
would  amount  to  $225,000.  The  interior  counties  of  the 
State  have  no  timber,  while  those  to  which  the  coal  will  be 
carried  can  supply  lumber  and  wood  to  any  amount.  The 
southern  portion  of  Illinois  has  fine  forests.  At  Dubuque 
or  its  vicinity,  are  saw  mills,  which  are  amply  supplied  from 
Minesota.  Chicago  is  well  known  as  the  great  lumber 
depot  of  the  Lakes,  taking  most  of  its  supply  from  the 
adjoining  State  of  Wisconsin.  The  Rock  Valley  Railroad 
terminating  here,  passes  through  vast  forests  of  white  pine. 
Now  in  the  Prairie  lands  of  Illinois,  through  which  the 
Central  Rail  Road,  will  be  carried  for  a  large  part  of  its 
whole  distance,  every  article  for  building,  fencing  and  fuel 
must  be  drawn  from  one  or  the  other  of  the  above  sources. 
The  cars,  therefore,  carrying  coal,  as  well  as  those  carrying 
produce  to  Chicago,  will  find  employment  on  their  return 
trips,  in  the  transportation  of  timber.  The  gross  income 
from  the  use  of  them  cannot  be  set  down  at  less  than 
$300,000. 

The  second  source  indicated  from  which  the  Road  is  to  be 
sustained,  is  "  the  produce  of  the  soil."  The  transportation 
of  Indian  corn  and  other  grains  will  be  the  important 
business  of  this  Road.  Their  production  will  in  time  be 
limited  by  the  capacity  of  the  road  to  carry  it  off.  In  an 
estimate  of  this  sort  then,  it  may  be  safe  to  neglect  all  other 
kinds  of  produce  or  rather  consider  them  as  merged  int 
the  one  article  of  maize,  or  Indian  corn.  We  have  already 
restricted  ourselves  to  a  population  in  the  district  of  country 


87 

lying  -within  fifteen  miles  of  the  Rail  Road,  to  the  density 
of  the  whole  State,  by  the  census  of  1850,  or  fifteen  to  the 
square  mile.    There  will  be,  as  before  stated,  20,000  of 
such  miles,  and  the  number  of  inhabitants  will  be  of  course, 
300,000.     A  large  portion  of  these  will  be  male  adults,  but 
taking  the  usual  calculation  of  five  to  a  family,  we  have 
60,000   families,     Deducting    again    one-sixth    for    other 
employments,  we  have  then  50,000  families  presumed  to  be 
engaged  in  the  cultivation  of  the  soil.     Now  it  cannot  be 
doubted,  I  think,  that  ten  families  can  easily  till  and  take  care 
of  1000  acres  of  Indian  corn  in  Illinois,  by  an  interchange  of 
labor.     It  is  as  certain  that  the  land  will  give  50,  60  and 
70  bushels  to  the  acre.     This  gives  an  average  of  100  acres 
of  cultivated  ground,  and  6000  bushels  of  corn  to  each 
family.     But  to  be  sure  not  to  overtask  the  powers  of  the 
people,  or  of  the  soil,  we  reduce  both  one-half,  50  acres,  and 
30  bushels  per  acre,  giving  to  each  family  1500  bushes.    Of 
this,  suppose  one-third  to  be  used  in  the  family  *nd  on  the 
farm   and  wasted.      There   remains   1000    lushels.      As 
a  portion  of  this  may  be  represented  by  less  bulky  and 
more  valuable  articles,  we  again  reduce  it  one- third  to  get 
at  the  weight  that  will  require  transportation  to  a  market. 
This  leaves  666^  bushels  of  corn,  or  an  equivalent  in  other 
things,  and  which  multiplied  by  the  number  of  families, 
gives   equal  to  33,333,000  bushels   of  Indian  corn.     The 
usual  mode  is  to  estimate  33  bushels  to  the  ton.     At  3% 
it  gives  1,000,000  tons.    The  average  distance  which  it 
would  have  to  be  transported  to  a  market  could  not  be  less 
than  100  miles,  and  the  price  would  be  low  at  five  cents  per 
ton  per  mile.     This  would  give  §4,000,000. 

3d.  The  returns  that  will  be  made  to  the  producers  of 
this  large  amount  of  property  must  bear  some  proportion 
to  it  in  value  and  in  bulk.  If  the  corn  nets  but  15  cents 
per  bushel,  it  will  give  to  each  family  $100,  and  to  the 
50,000  families  $5,000,000.  To  keep  within  bounds,  we 
will  suppose  that  exclusive  of  the  lumber  by  the  coal  and 
Bother  trains,  only  one-eighth  of  the  outward  tonnage  is 
Teturned  in  supplies.  This  would  give  the  Road,  at  the 


enhanced  rate  which  such  goods  would  bear,  (say  4  cents 
per  ton  per  mile,)  or  $5  per  ton,  $625,000. 

4th.  The  local  travel  of  this  same  population  will  be  an 
item  of  some  importance.  They  must  be  considerably  scat- 
tered, and  if  they  associate  at  all,  they  will  use  the  Road. 
Each  head  of  a  family  will  have  his  own  produce  to  dispose 
of,  and  that  will  require  his  presence  at  the  market  towns. 
Now,  if  each  family  averages  five  journeys  of  60  miles  each, 
or  300  miles  per  annum  for  the  whole  household,  it  will 
cause  the  Eoad  to  carry  one  passenger  18,000,000  miles, 
which  at  3  cents  per  mile,  is  five  hundred  and  forty  thou- 
sand dollars.  This  would  amount  to  nine  dollars  for  each 
family  per  annum.  If  we  reduce  it  one-half,  there  can  be 
little  doubt  of  the  other  half  being  made  up  and  much  more 
than  made  up  by  the  other  local  passenger  and  freight 
bubvriess,  such  as  those  living  without  the  line  of  twelve 
miles,  of  citizens  of  other  States  visiting  the  stations,  and 
the  thousand  occasions  for  trips  from  the  terminii  to  the 
interior.  It  sterns  safe,  then,  to  let  this  item  stand. 

5th.  The  through  travel,  which  will  consist  of  all  passen- 
gers passing  over  thb  Road,  or  any  part  of  it,  on  their  way 
to  and  from  other  States.  There  is  a  great  tide  of  travel 
from  the  South  and  West,  that  has  heretofore  ebbed  and 
flowed  regularly  Northerly  and  Easterly  in  early  Spring, 
and  Southerly  and  Westerly  iu  Autumn,  impelled  by 
business  or  pleasure,  or  both>  Various  channels  to  accom- 
modate this  mighty  current  have  been  or  will  be  provided. 
The  principal  of  these  are : 

1.  The  Southern  line  of  rail  roads,  steamboats  and 

stages,  through  Virginia,  the  Carolinas,  Georgia, 
and  Alabama. 

2.  The  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Rail  Road  intended  to  be 

constructed  to  Wheeling  on  the  Ohio  River. 

3.  The  Pennsylvania  Rail  Road  and  the  Ohio  Central 

from  Philadelphia  to  Pittsburg,  thence  by  one  line 
to  Lake  Erie,  and  by  another  through  Columbus 
and  eventually  to  Vincennes  and  St.  Louis. 


89 

4.  The  Erie  Rail  Road  to  Dunkirk,  thence  by  the  Lake 

Shore  Roads  to  Toledo,  thence  by  Southern 
Michigan  to  Chicago. 

5.  The  Hudson  River  Road,  connecting  with  all  the 

Albany  and  Buffalo  Roads,  terminating  at  Buffalo, 
or  Niagara  Falls,  thence  by  the  Great  Western 
Rail  Road  through  Canada  West  to  Detroit, 
thence  by  the  Michigan  Central  to  a  junction  with 
the  Illinois  Central  at  or  near  Chicago.  At  Buf- 
falo also,  passengers  for  the  West,  take  steamboats 
for  Detroit,  or  direct  for  Chicago. 

Now  all  these  routes,  except  the  two  first,  though  to  a 
degree  competing  among  themselves,  will  disgorge  their 
Southwestern  freight  and  passengers  upon  the  Illinois 
Central,  which  will  in  turn  benefit  them,  by  affording  the 
quickest  and  best  line  from  the  Atlantic  to  New- Orleans. 
When  the  Mobile  and  Ohio,  the  Illinois  Central,  the  Great 
Western  and  the  Hudson  River  Rail  Roads  shall  be  com- 
pleted, the  distances  and  time  of  passenger  trains  will  be : 

New- York  to  Albany,        .  .    144  miles,    5  hours, 
Albany  to  Niagara,        .        .         300     "      11     " 

Niagara  to  Detroit,    .        .  .229     "      10    " 
Detroit  to  Michigan  City,       .        227     "      10    " 

Michigan  City  to  Cairo,     .  .    400     "      16     '• 
Cairo  to  Mobile,    ...        500    "      20    " 

1800  72 

all  by  Rail  Road,  and  without  change  of  baggage  from  the 
crates.  If  this  can  be  approximated,  and  there  is  no  reason 
why  it  should  not  be  reached,  no  route  between  the  East 
and  the  West,  either  by  sea  or  land  can  successfully  compete 
with  it.  But  supposing  all  this  is  imaginat^pn,  and  assuming 
all  the  present  difficulties  of  this  route  to  continue,  snags 
in  the  rivers,  explosions  of  the  boilers,  break  down  of  the 
machinery,  cholera  in  the  vessel  and  quarantines  on  shore, 


90 

we  shall  find  few  who  will  estimate  the  present  travel  over 
the  roads  and  streams  for  which  the  Illinois  Central  route 
will  be  the  substitute,  at  less  than  than  250  weekly  each 
way,  averaged  through  the  year  on  each  and  every  part  of 
them.  But  suppose  this  number  only  pass  over  400  miles 
of  the  Road,  they  will  travel  10,400,000  miles,  which  at  3 
cents  per  mile,  will  give  $312,000.  In  this  same  class  of 
business  must  be  included  the  transportation  of  merchan- 
dise from  points  beyond  the  terminii  of  the  Road.  As  the 
route  will  be  the  shortest,  safest  and  quickest  between  the 
West  and  the  East,  it  will  be  likely  to  secure  almost  all  the 
valuable  goods  imported  or  manufactured  by  the  Atlantic 
States  for  the  supply  of  the  great  Valley  of  the  Mississippi, 
but  in  return,  little  except  specie  can  be  expected.  Putting 
the  amount  at  20,000  tons  both  ways,  and  the  rate  at  $10 
per  ton,  gives  us  $200,000. 

6th.  Transportation  of  the  Mail.  As  this  will  be  the 
most  expeditious  route,  the  least  exposed  to  delay  and 
danger,  and  will  connect  with  all  the  important  lines  of 
Rail  Roads  and  Steamboats,  it  should  be  entitled  to  the 
highest  rate  of  compensation  allowed  by  law.  Placing  it, 
however,  in  the  second  class,  the  amount  would  be  at  least 
$67,000  per  annum.  If  we  add  for  expenses,  parcels  and 
miscellaneous,  $31,000,  we  close  our  estimate  of  probable 
Income,  making  the  total  amount  as  follows  : 

150,000  tons  coal  carried  75  miles  each,  Gross  income  $225,000 

150,000    "    lumber  "     100     "       "  "  "        300,000 

1,000,000    "  produce  "     100     "       "  "  "     4,000,000 

125,000    "  merchandise  back  "       "  "  625,000 

60,000  passengers  (local)  300  "       "  "  540,000 

26,000       "      (through)  400  "       "  "  312,000 

20,000  tons  thro'  freight  400  miles  each  "  "        200,000 


6,202,000 
Mails  Ac., 98,000 


$6,300,000 


91 

To  transport  the  above,  258,000,000  tons  of  merchandise 
or  individual  passengers  must  have  been  carried  one  mile, 
estimating  each  ton  of  merchandise  outward  as  two,  but  not 
estimating  anything  for  the  return  freight,  and  putting  the 
expenses  at  one  cent  per  ton,  or  per  passenger  carried  one 
mile,  the  cost  is  $2,580,000 

and  leaving  a  Net  Income  of  3,720,000 

less  7  per  ct.  of  Gross  Income,  440,000— leaves  3,280,000 
or  an  interest  of  7  per  cent,  on  nearly  $47,000,000.  It  is. 
however,  an  amount  of  business  that  could  not  be  performed 
on  a  single  track,  and  with  the  depot  accommodation,  such  as 
we  presume  the  Company  will  have  prepared  at  the  outset. 
The  statement,  however,  seems  to  show  that  there  will  be 
as  much  business  as.  can  be  well  managed  when  the  Road 
is  first  opened.  It  may,  therefore,  be  proper  to  show  what 
can  be  conveniently  done  with  a  single  track,  and  what 
equipment  will  be  required  to  do  it. 

It  may  be  set  down  as  an  axiom  in  Rail  Road  manage- 
ment, that  it  should  be  prepared  to  do  every  day  and  any 
day  double  its  annual  average.  Thus,  if  the  whole  tonnage 
of  the  313  working  days  in  the  year  be  313,000  tons,  or  an 
average  of  1000  tons  per  day,  the  road  should  be  prepared 
always  to  take  2000  tons,  because  it  may  at  any  time  be 
called  on  to  do  so.  But  to  do  this,  it  is  evident  it  must 
have  an  equipment  sufficient,  not  simply  to  carry  this 
amount,  but  also  sufficient  to  allow  for  cars  and  engines 
detained,  as  they  may  be  from  several  causes.  If  not  thus 
provided  it  cannot  adapt  itself  to  all  the  variations  of 
trade. 

I  suppose  the  Company  could  conveniently  enough 
operate  the  Road  as  follows — daily  and  each  way  : 

1.  One  freight  train  from  Dubuque  to  the  point  of  deviation 

(in  39  deg.  30  m.)  of  the  Chicago  Branch,      260  miles 

2.  One  passenger  train,  do 260     " 

3.  One  freight  train,  half-way  between  Junction 

and  Dubuque,  say          *,  •  .        .        130    " 


92 

4.  Two  freig't  trains  from  Junction  to  Cairo,  say  174  miles 

5.  Five  freight  trains  from  Junction  to  Chicago,    226    " 

6.  One  coal  train  from  mines  to  Cairo,      .  54    " 

7.  One  "         «          Danville  to  Chicago,    120     " 

8.  1  pass,  train,  Cairo  to  Chicago,  accomm'n.       400    " 

9.  One  «  «         express,          400    " 

These  trains  will  require,  for  actual  use,  the  following 
equipment  and  will  run  the  distances  annexed : 

Miles  per  annum. 

1.  60  Double  freight  cars,  and     4  locomotives,  making  188,760 

2.  20  Pass'r  cars,  60  seats  each,  4          "  "         188,760 

3.  60  Double  freight  cars,  and     2          "  "  81,380 

4.  120      "            '.'  "  4  "  "  217,840 

5.  240      "            "  "  16  "  "  565,904 

6.  100  Single  coal  cars,  "  2  "  "  33,804 

7.  160      "            "  "  2  "  "  75,120 

8.  20  Passenger  cars,  60  seats,    8          "  "         250,400 

9.  20      "  "  "        8          "  "         250,400 


50  1,852,368 

To  the  locomotives  we  may  add  for  contingencies  50  pr  ct. 
Passenger  cars          "  "  "  50     " 

Freight  cars  and  coal  cars        "  100     " 

And  to  the  distance  run,  say  147,632 

Giving  75  engines,  90  passengers,  960  freight,  and  640 
coal  cars,  and  distance  2,000,000 

With  this  power  and  arrangement  it  would  be  easy  to 
transport  each  way  if  the  business  was  uniform,  for  a  dis- 
tance of  200  miles  daily,  2400  tons  of  merchandise ;  but 
conforming  to  the  rule,  already  laid  down,  of  being  prepared 
to  do  double  the  average,  it  will  be  fair  to  put  the  capacity 
at  1200  tons,  100  miles  outward,  and  300  tons  inward. 
The  coal  trains  could  take  400  tons,  and  those  to  Chicago 
bring  back  400  tons  of  lumber  or  heavy  goods.  Reduce 
these  also  to  one  half,  and  assuming  the  outward  freight  in 
produce,  at  4  cents  per  ton  per  mile,  inward  at  5  cents,  and 


93 


coal  and  lumber  at  2  cents,  and  passengers  at  3  cents  per 
mile,  we  shall  arrive  at  the  following  results  : 


1200  tons  outward  freight      312J  days  is  375,000  tons  at  $4 
300    "     inward      "  " 

200    "    coal  to  Cairo,         313 


200         coal  to  Chicago,      "         ' 

200       lumber  from  Chicago,  313J  ' 

64         through  freight,         313    ' 


93.750 
62,600 
62,600 
62,600 
20,000 


$1,500,000 
468,750 
62,600 
125,200 
125,200 
$10,       200,000 


26,000  through  pass'rs,  400  miles  each,  10,400,000  miles  at  3  cts.,  312,000 

60,000  local           "       300     "        "      18,000,000    "     "  3    "  540,000 

Mail  $100  per  mile,                      ....  66,000 

Expresses,  Parcels,  and  Miscellaneous,        -          -  38,250 

$3,438,000 
State  Tax  7  per  cent,  say,  -  .  238,000 

$3,200,000 
COST  or  OPERATING. 

73,280,000  tons  carried  1  mile,  at  1 J  cts.  pr  ton  pr  mile,  $916,000 
28,400,000  passengers  carried  1  mile,  at  1  cent  pr  mile,  284.000  1,200,000 

Being  60  cents  per  mile  run  by  trains.  Net  income    $2,000,000 

being  7  per  cent.,  on  between  twenty-eight  and  twenty-nine 
millions  of  dollars.  It  is  evident  that  we  may  deduct  one- 
third  from  the  gross  income,  and  still  have  enough  to  ensure 
the  interest  on  the  cost  of  the  Road.  In  fact,  it  seems 
difficult,  without  throwing  away  all  the  results  of  experience 
and  rejecting  the  plainest  deductions  from  the  action  of 
well  known  causes,  to  make  an  estimate  of  the  business 
that  will  riot  produce  an  income,  that  per  se,  will  appear 
extravagantly  large  on  the  capital  invested.  Yet  if  it  had 
been  my  object  to  discourage  investments  in  the  stock  or 
bonds  of  such  an  enterprise,  and  had  claimed  that  it  could 
expect  no  more  business  than  was  indicated  in  the  preceding 
statement,  without  showing  its  proceeds,  I  am  sure  I  should 
have  been  accused  of  a  ridiculous  depreciation  of  its  proba- 
ble amount.  There  seems  indeed,  very  little  doubt,  that 
instead  of  one,  before  many  years  pass  by,  a  double  track 
will  be  required  the  whole  length  of  the  line,  and  perhaps 
four  tracks  between  the  coal  pits  and  the  terminii  of  the 
Road.  My  intention,  however,  is  not  to  show  how  profita- 


94 

ble  the  Road  may  prove  as  a  speculation,  but  to  prove  that 
it  will  be  good  security  for  the  sum  expended  in  its  con- 
struction. If  it  be  so,  then  it  is  evident  that  to  the  bond 
holder,  who  wants  security  and  nothing  else,  it  is  not  of 
much  consequence  what  the  mortgaged  lands  may  be  worth, 
but  to  those  who  seek  profit  it  may  be,  for  if  these  lands 
should  not  be  wanted  at  the  prices  fixed  by  the  Directors, 
they  will  not  be  sold,  and  consequently  the  Bonds  will 
not  be  taken  by  the  Company  at  20  per  cent,  advance 
at  which  they  have  retained  the  right  to  redeem  them. 
But  if  there  be  not  some  gross  fallacy  pervading  all 
our  previous  calculations,  if  the  usual  motive  that  governs 
men  in  making  their  investments,  to  wit.: — the  proportion 
that  the  income  will  bear  to  the  principal,  does  not  cease  to 
operate,  if  the  increase  of  native,  and  the  influx  of  foreign 
population  does  not  stop,  if  experience  and  analogy  do  not 
deceive  us,  and  if  all  who  have  looked  closely  into  the  sub- 
ject are  not  grossly  mistaken,  these  lands  will  bring  every 
dollar  at  which  the  Directors  of  the  Company  have  appraised, 
or  in  all  probability  will  wish  them  to  be  sold. 

The  prices  that  have  been  affixed  to  these  lands  may 
appear  large,  especially  when  it  is  known  that  there  is  an 
equal  quantity  equally  valuable  that  can  and  will  be  entered, 
as  soon  as  the  location  of  the  road  is  known,  at  the  Govern- 
ment minimum  rate  of  $2-|-  per  acre.  But  it  must  be 
recollected  that  it  is  not  of  the  prices  of  to-day  that  we 
speak ;  that  it  is  not  an  unproachable  wilderness  devoid  of 
culture  and  destitute  of  inhabitants,  that  we  value.  It  is 
not  a  country  on  the  outskirts  of  civilization,  untrodden 
save  by  the  wild  animals  of  the  Prarie,  or  the  wilder  Indian 
of  the  forest.  But  it  is  Illinois  in  1860  or  1870,  that  we  are 
to  appreciate.  It  is  a  region  dotted  with  flourishing  farms 
and  covered  with  an  enterprising  and  industrious  popula- 
tion, that  we  offer  for  sale.  It  is  the  exact  centre  of  the 
American  Union,  sustained  by  clusters  of  sister  States  all 
around,  with  its  schools  supported  by  the  magnificent 
domains  already  granted  in  every  section  for  their  use. 
with  all  the  appliances  of  modern  science  brought  to  bear 


95 

upon  its  own  extraordinary  powers  of  production,  with  one 
great  trunk  Rail  Road  traversing  its  whole  extent  from  the 
North  to  the  South,  and  connecting  the  sources  of  the 
Mississippi  with  the  waters  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  with 
rail  roads  and  plank  roads  intersecting  it  in  every  direction, 
giving  it  all  needful  facilities,  with  a  location  within  48 
hours  of  New-York  or  New-Orleans,  wifti  vast  fields  made 
ready  by  nature  for  the  plough  or  the  harrow,  with  valuable 
forests,  and  with  inexhaustible  beds  of  lead  and  coal ;  under 
all  these  advantages  can  there  be  much  doubt  of  finding 
purchasers  at  prices  in  fee,  that  in  many  of  the  States  less 
populous  than  this  will  be  in  ten  years,  would  hardly  pay 
the  rental  for  a  single  year. 

The  object  of  this  memoir  is  to  provoke  criticism — to 
bring  forward  objections,  if  there  be  any,  to  the  course 
adopted  by  the  Corporation,  to  elicit  the  truth  by  discus- 
sion, to  detect  errors  of  fact  and  errors  of  imagination  ;  in  a 
word,  to  arrive  at  a  point  in  the  investigation  of  the  subject 
about  which  there  can,  under  no  circumstances,  be  any 
doubt,  and  to  show  a  basis  for  investment  that  cannot  fail 
in  the  essential  elements  of  security  of  capital  and  prompt 
and  regular  receipt  of  interest. 

The  writer  subscribes  his  name,  not  because  it  is  of  any 
importance  who  presents  facts  that  are  of  general  notoriety, 
or  draws  deductions  from  them  which  all  can  judge  of,  but 
because  he  does  not  wish  to  give  his  representations  any 
effect  by  concealing  his  interest  in  the  undertaking,  or 
to  let  it  be  surmised  that  his  statements  or  calculations 
have  any  official  sanction.  They  have  not  been  submitted 
to  the  Board  of  Directors,  or  to  any  of  the  officers  of  the 
Company.  From  them  a  more  elaborate  report  of  the 
location  and  character  of  the  Road,  of  the  circumstances 
of  its  position,  of  the  probable  extent  of  its  traffic,  of  its 
future  increase,  of  the  value  of  its  property,  and  of  the 
validity  of  its  securities,  may  soon  be  expected.  It  is  the 
humble,  but  perhaps,  not  useless  design  of  these  pages  to 
awaken  so  much  curiosity  in  relation  to  this  subject  as  will 


96 

ensure  to  that  Report  the  attention  to  which  its  import- 
ance will  justly  entitle  it,  and  to  foreshadow  the  features 
of  a  plan  that  offers  a  mode  of  investment  as  ample  in 
its  guaranties  as  the  securities  of  Government,  without 
their  liabilities  to  fluctuations  with  the  changing  aspects  of 
the  times. 

D.  A.  NEAL. 
NEW-YORK,  July  1st,  1851. 


99 


EXTRACT  OF  A  LETTER 

FROM  His  EXCELLENCY,  GOVERNOR  FRENCH,  EX-OFFICIO, 

A  DIRECTOR  OF  THE  COMPANY,  DATED 

SPRINGFIELD,  SEPT.  3,  1851. 

DEAR  SIR, — 

I  have  been  put  in  possession  of  a  pamphlet  published 
by  DAVID  A.  NEAL,  Esq.,  in  which  he  treats  of  the  present 
and  prospective  condition  of  the  State  of  Illinois  in  its 
relation  to  the  ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD,  and  its 
branches.  I  looked  it  over  with  much  care  and  attention, 
and  I  take  occasion  to  say,  that  I  am  highly  pleased  with 
it,  especially  with  his  practical  views  of  the  Agricultural 
and  mineral  resources  of  the  State.  The  detailed  views  he 
takes  of  these,  more  nearly  correspond  with  the  impression 
and  knowledge  of  those  here,  who  are  considered  the  best 
judges  of  the  matter,  than  all  else  I  have  seen  in  print  from 
any  quarter.  He  shows  apter  and  more  intimate  know- 
ledge of  the  actual  capabilities  of  the  soil,  and  other 
resources  of  the  State,  its  peculiar  central  position,  and 
what  may  reasonably  be  expected  from  all  these  united, 
than  I  had  supposed  any  man  to  possess  out  of  the  State. 
While  a  more  intimate  personal  knowledge  might  lead  him 
to  modify  his  views  in  minor  particulars,  he  is  beyond  doubt, 
in  the  main,  correct,  and  may  be  relied  on  with  very  great 
assurance.  His  remarks  on  the  subject  of  coal  alone,  are 
worthy  of  great  attention,  as  being  correct  both  in  regard 
to  its  transportation,  and  the  exhaustless  demand  which 
will  exist  for  it.  It  is  quite  certain  that  the  Southern 
portion  of  the  State,  from  Marion  County  South,  and 
Fayette  County  East,  to  the  Great  Wabash  River,  and  to 
Vermillion  County  North,  is  almost  one  uniform  coal  bed, 
with  its  main  dip  on  the  Western  side.  West  and  North 
of  those  lines  but  little  coal  is  found,  and  this  in  detatched 


98 

spots,  and  of  an  inferior  quality.  But  with  this  I  am  but 
exhausting  your  patience.  Be  pleased  to  convey  to  Mr. 
Neal  the  gratification  I  have  felt  in  perusing  his  pamphlet, 
and  assure  him  that  he  has  laid  us  under  obligations  to  him, 
for  if  it  does  not  result  to  the  ultimate  benefit  of  the  Com- 
pany it  will  tend  to  promote  the  prosperity  of  the  State, 
by  furnishing  many  correct  views  in  a  narrow  compass,  and 
inviting  emigration  to  the  State.  Our  newspaper  notices 
it  very  favorably  and  at  large. 

With  respect  and  esteem,  I  am 

Very  truly,  yours, 

AUG.  C.  FRENCH. 


LETTER 


TO 


ROBERT  SCHUYLER, 


PRESIDENT  OF  THE 


ILLINOIS  CENTRAL  RAIL  ROAD  COMPANY, 


ON    THE 


VALUE  OF  THE  PUBLIC  LANDS  OF  ILLINOIS. 


BY  ROBERT  RANTOUL,  JR., 

ONE  OF  THE  DIRECTORS. 


LETTER. 


BEVERLY,  September  1st,  1851. 
SIR: 

In  entering,  at  your  request,  into  an  inquiry  as  to  the 
prospective  value  of  lands  in  Illinois,  I  think  it  proper  to 
examine  the  general  considerations  which  will  influence  the 
settlement  of  the  State,  because  it  seems  to  me  that  by  this 
course  we  may  arrive  at  a  result  much  more  satisfactory 
and  certain  than  by  comparing  the  prices  of  land  in  par- 
ticular localities,  or  by  collecting  the  opinions  of  individuals. 
The  Illinois  Central  Railroad  is  to  be  the  main  artery  of 
communication  between  vast  sections  of  this  continent,  and 
its  value  depends  upon  the  amount  of  intercourse  between 
those  sections,  and  upon  the  business  of  the  population 
along  the  line.  What  this  population  is  likely  to  number 
at  any  given  date  may  be  judged  from  facts  positively  and 
officially  ascertained,  so  that  the  reader,  if  not  satisfied 
with  our  conclusions,  will  have  before  him  the  means  to 
form  his  own. 

The  territory  of  the  United  States  consists  of  four  great 
natural  divisions,  two  slopes  toward  the  ocean  on  the  east 
and  west,  and  two  valleys  or  basins,  one  stretching  from  the 
centre  of  the  continent  easterly,  the  other  from  the  same 
centre  southerly.  The  natural  route  of  the  largest  travel 
to  and  from  each  of  these  divisions  lies  through  the  State 
of  Illinois.  The  passage  from  the  Basin  of  the  Lakes  and 
the  St.  Lawrence,  an  area  of  about  one  million  of  square 
miles,  to  the  central  and  southern  parts  of  the  Valley  of 
the  Mississippi  must  necessarily  be  from  the  southern 
10 


102 

extremity  of  Lake  Michigan  through  Illinois.  The  travel 
from  the  northern  portion  of  the  Atlantic  slope,  the  nine 
North  Eastern  States,  having  already  more  than  eight  and 
a  half  millions  of  inhabitants,  must  follow  the  same  route  to 
reach  the  same  destination.  The  line  of  our  road,  continu- 
ed to  Mobile,  or  by  steamboat  down  the  river,  links  the 
Basin  of  the  Lakes  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  so  that  all  the 
trade  and  travel  of  that  Basin  to  and  from  the  West  India 
Islands,  Mexico,  and  Central  America,  and  across  the  Gulf 
to  the  Pacific  Coast  of  North  and  South  America,  naturally 
pass  that  way.  Illinois,  therefore,  is  not  only  accessible 
from  all  quarters,  but  on  the  line  of  the  principal  thorough- 
fares of  the  continent ;  and  when  those  thoroughfares  are 
once  opened  for  the  cheapest  and  speediest  travel  and  trans- 
portation through  the  whole  length  of  her  territory,  all  her 
resources  must  be  at  once  revealed  to  the  world :  if  her 
lands  offer  the  strongest  inducements  to  settlers,  that  fact 
must  be  almost  immediately  known,  appreciated  and  acted 
upon. 

The  States  northwest  of  the  Ohio  are  seven  in  number, 
five  of  them  east,  and  two  of  them  west  of  the  Mississippi. 
Of  these,  the  three  older  States,  which  are  those  bordering 
on  the  Ohio,  are  so  far  settled  that  the  Government  has 
already  parted  with  more  than  five-sixths  of  the  lands  with- 
in their  limits,  while  in  the  other  four  States  the  Govern- 
ment retains  as  yet  more  than  two-thirds  of  the  lands.  The 
unsold  lands  in  the  three  older  of  these  States  are  distribu- 
ted as  follows : 

Ohio,  containing  25,576,960  acres:    Unsold         367,742  acres. 
Indiana,        "        21,637,760      "  "  1,511,266      " 

Illinois,         "        35459,200     "  "          11,449,471      " 


The  three  States  "        82,673,920     "  "          13,328,479      " 

The  land  unsold  in  Ohio  and  Indiana,  is  less  than  would 
be  required  to  furnish  farms  of  the  ordinary  extent  for  one 
year's  natural  increase  of  the  population  of  those  States, 
allowing  nothing  for  emigration.  For  all  practical  purpo- 
ses, therefore,  we  may  regard  the  public  lands  of  those  two 


103 

States  as  exhausted,  and  those  of  Illinois  come  into  compe- 
tition only  with  the  four  younger  States,  as  yet  but  sparsely 
settled,  Michigan,  Wisconsin,  Iowa  and  Missouri.  These 
last  four  States  contain  more  than  one  hundred  and  forty- 
six  millions  of  acres,  of  which  more  than  ninety-eight  mil- 
lions remain  to  be  disposed  of  by  the  General  Government. 
[See  Tables  A  and  B.] 

To  determine  the  disposable  value  of  land  in  Illinois,  it 
will  be  convenient  to  take  as  a  criterion  that  of  some  other 
State  more  densely  peopled,  say  for  instance  Ohio,  and 
make  that  the  basis  of  our  reasoning.  We  are  in  no  danger 
of  being  carried  too  far  by  this  method,  because  we  institute 
a  comparison  between  the  most  fertile  land  in  the  world  and 
that  which  is  much  less  productive ;  and  between  land  bor- 
dering on  a  perfect  railroad  and  having  the  best  access  to 
market,  and  the  whole  surface  of  Ohio,  much  of  it  not  so  ac- 
cessible. It  will  be  found  also  that  the  price  of  land  continues 
to  increase  in  a  ratio  much  greater  than  the  density  of  popu- 
lation Massachusetts  has  about  two  and  a  half  times  as  many 
inhabitants  to  a  square  mile  as  Ohio,  but  land  as  good  as  that 
of  Ohio,  and  cultivated  with  as  little  cost  and  labor,  is  worth 
more  than  five  times  as  much  in  Massachusetts  as  the  offi- 
cial valuation  in  Ohio. 

What  then  is  the  present  value  of  land  in  Ohio,  for  agri- 
cultural purposes,  estimated  at  a  rate  low  enough  to  form  a 
safe  basis  for  prudent  calculations  ? 

The  official  valuation  of  all  the  lands  subject  to  taxation 
in  Ohio,  exclusive  of  that  included  in  towns,  was  23,768,835 
acres,  estimated  at  $264,661,957,  which  gives  an  average 
of  $11.13^  per  acre,  for  the  year  1849.  Towns  are  sepa- 
rately valued  at  a  further  sum  of  more  than  seventy  millions 
of  dollars.  It  is  generally  supposed  that  to  this  assessment 
for  the  purpose  of  taxation,  at  least  one-third  should  be 
added  to  ascertain  the  true  selling  price ;  if  we  add  one- 
fourth  only,  it  gives  us  $13.91^  as  the  real  value  in  1849, 
which  at  the  present  time,  1851,  must  be  increased  at  least 


104 

six  per  cent.,  giving  $14.75  per  acre.  The  more  thoroughly 
this  estimate  is  examined,  the  more  undeniably  will  it  ap- 
pear that  it  is  below  the  true  value,  yet  place  our  data 
beyond  the  reach  to  of  cavil,  let  us  admit  the  price  per  acre 
to  be  $12  only.  A  ready  test  to  be  applied  to  this  price  is 
to  see  what  rate  it  would  give  in  other  States  more  settled, 
and  also  in  those  less  settled,  if  the  price  rose  in  the  ratio 
of  the  density  of  population. 

This  rule  would  give  per  acre,  for  Massachusetts  $33.00 ; 
Connecticut  $18.84;  New- York  $16.00;  Pennsylvania 
$12.90 ;  Indiana  $7.20  ;  Kentucky  $6.25  ;  Michigan  $1.71 ; 
Wisconsin  $1.33  ;  Iowa  .92  ;  Missouri  $2.40. 

Those  acquainted  with  these  States,  will  at  once  pro- 
nounce these  prices  to  be  far  below  the  value  of  land  in  each 
of  them. 

Is  the  productive  capacity  of  the  land  sufficient  to  yield  a 
fair  return  on  the  investment  ?  Because  if  it  be  not,  the 
price  cannot  be  expected  to  rise  higher  than  the  rate  which 
will  give  a  rent  equal  to  the  average  of  other  States.  In 
the  report  of  the  Commissioner  of  Patents  for  1849,  page 
232,  it  is  stated  that  there  are  five  or  »ix  States  in  this 
Union  in  which  "  men  can  grow  maize  on  common  soil, 
place  the  crop  in  a  crib  at  from  six  to  ten  cents  a  bushel, 
and  pay  a  fair  price  for  the  labor."  This  can  be  done  much 
cheaper  in  Central  Illinois  than  in  the  average  of  these  five 
or  six  States.  Corn  is  often  raised  at  or  below  five  cents. 

The  produce  of  an  acre  is,  at  a  low  rate,  fifty 

bushels — say  at  8  cents,          .        .        .        $4.00 

Hauling  to  Railroad, 50 

Transportation  150  miles,  at  4  cents  per  ton,     .        9.00 

27  cents  per  bushel,  per  acre,        $13.50 

If  the  price  at  Chicago  should  not  go  below  37  cents,  an 
immense  exportation  may  be  depended  upon.  If  delivered 


105 

in  Liverpool  low  enough  to  be  used  by  British  graziers  for 
fatting  cattle,  the  quantity  required  for  their  consumption 
is  almost  beyond  calculation.  But  this  price,  after  so  long 
a  journey  as  150  miles,  gives  a  nett  profit  of  ten  cents  a 
bushel,  or  five  dollars  per  acre,  which  is  equal  to  an  interest 
of  twenty  per  cent,  on  an  original  investment  of  twenty-five 
dollars  per  acre. 

Suppose  corn  carried  upon  the  Railroad  half  this  distance, 
or  seventy-five  miles.  It  may  be  brought  great  distances 
to  the  depot  for  this  purpose,  by  means  of  plank  roads, 
which  will  speedily  be  constructed. 

Fifty  bushels,  at  8  cents,  cost  .  $4.00 
Conveyance  to  depot,  say,  .  .  1.00 
Transportation  75  miles,  .  .  .  4.50 

Cost  delivered  at  the  Lake,        $9.50 
Value  at  the  Lake,         37  cts. 
Cost,      .     •  ,-       .        19 

Net  profit  per  bushel,    18  cts. 

This  would  realize  nine  dollars  profit,  or  twenty  per  cent. 
on  an  investment  of  forty-five  dollars  per  acre. 

If  an  article  so  bulky  as  corn  cannot  be  profitably  carried 
the  whole  length  of  the  Railroad,  it  is  to  be  recollected  that 
animal  products  can  bear  transportation  three  or  four  times 
as  far  as  corn,  and  still  pay  a  much  smaller  per  centage  on 
their  cost.  The  freight  of  a  barrel  of  pork  three  hundred 
miles  will  not  exceed  a  dollar  and  fifty  cents  at  the  outset : 
and  the  rates  of  toll  assumed  are  capable  of  very  great  re- 
duction, so  soon  as  the  business  of  the  road  requires  the 
construction  of  a  double  track ;  a  contingency  not  far  dis- 
tant in  the  future. 

It  is  plain,  from  these  remarks,  that  all  the  land  within 
fifteen  miles  of  the  Central  Railroad  is  intrinsically  worth, 
from  its  power  of  production,  not  only  as  much  as,  but  an 


106 

average  twice  as  high  as  that  which  we  have  assumed  to  be 
the  selling  price  of  Ohio  lands.  Such  an  average  might  be 
realized,  if  the  supply  of  such  lands  were  not  much  greater 
than  the  demand  for  cultivation. 

It  becomes  then  necessary  to  inquire  how  long  will^the 
supply  exceed  the  demand,  not  for  speculation,  because  that 
is  too  precarious  and  unsteady  for  our  consideration,  but  the 
demand  by  actual  settlers  for  cultivation.  We  have  official 
data  by  which  this  question  can  be  answered,  approximate- 
ly, but  as  definitely  and  with  as  strong  a  probability  of  cor- 
rectness as  anything  future  can  be  known,  which  depends 
on  the  voluntary  action  and  separate  judgment  of  multitudes 
of  individual  men. 

The  quantity  of  land  taken  up  by  each  occupant  in  the 
Western  States,  differs,  of  course,  with  the  density  of  popu- 
lation, and  the  price  to  which  land  has  risen.  In  the  State 
of  Ohio,  the  land  sold  and  granted  averages  less  than  thir> 
teen  acres  per  head  for  the  whole  population ;  in  Indiana 
it  is  twenty  and  one-third  acres,  and  in  Illinois  twenty-eight 
acres  per  head.  In  the  other  four  North  Western  States  it 
slightly  exceeds  thirty  acres.  [See  Table  C.] 

The  eleven  millions  of  acres  of  land  not  yet  taken  up  in 
Illinois,  would  supply  a  population  of  little  more  than  four 
hundred  thousand  persons  with  twenty-eight  acres  each, 
the  quantity  thus  far  in  Illinois.  This  increase  to  her  popu- 
lation, at  the  ordinary  rate,  will  accrue  in  six  or  seven  years. 
If  the  land  were  divided  in  the  same  proportion  as  in  In- 
diana, it  would  be  sufficient  for  about  five  hundred  and  sixty- 
five  thousand  persons.  If  divided  as  in  Ohio,  it  would 
supply  nine  hundred  and  five  thousand.  But,  unless  the 
rate  of  increase  should  be  checked,  which  there  is  no  reason 
to  apprehend,  five  hundred  and  sixty-five  thousand  persons 
will  be  added  to  the  population  of  Illinois  in  eight  years, 
and  nine  hundred  and  five  thousand  in  twelve  years.  The 
ordinary  increase  of  population,  such  as  causes  already  ex- 
isting, have  been  sufficient  to  maintain  for  the  last  fifty 


107 

years,  -without  the  aid  of  artificial  channels  of  intercourse, 
•will  be  quite  sufficient  to  exhaust,  twelve  years  before  your 
bonds  fall  due,  the  whole  quantity  of  land  owned  by  the 
Government  in  Illinois  on  the  30th  of  June,  1850.  This 
quantity,  however,  is  very  far  beyond  that  now  remaining 
at  the  disposal  of  the  United  States,  as  I  shall  have  occa- 
sion to  show. 

If,  without  referring  to  the  quantity  of  unsold  land,  we 
inquire  simply  how  soon   the  tract  through  which  the  road 
is  to  pass  will  arrive  at  the  average  density  of  population  of 
Ohio,  we  observe,  that  if  the  road  be  of  the  length  generally 
anticipated,  there  will  be  included  within  fifteen  miles  of 
the  line,  about  twenty  thousand  square  miles  of  surface, 
having  at  present  about  three  hundred  thousand  inhabitants. 
Seven  hundred  thousand  must,  therefore,  be  added,  to  reach 
an  average  of  fifty  to  the  mile.     Suppose  only  two-thirds 
of  the  additional  population  of  the  State  to  settle  within 
fifteen  miles  of  the  Rail   Road,  and  still  the   requisite 
density  will  be  reached,  at  the  rate  of  increase  of  Illinois 
for  the  last  ten  years,  in  thirteen  years  from  the  present 
date ;  that  is  to  say,  about  the  1st  of  September,  1864. 
The  State  would  then  contain  besides  the  million  of  inhabit- 
ants Avithin  fifteen  miles  of  the  Central  Rail  Road,  almost 
an  equal  number  occupying  the  remaining  three  fifths  of  its 
territory,  at  an  average  density  of  twenty-seven  to  the 
square  mile,  about  the  average  already  reached    by  the 
whole  State   of  Indiana ;  and  the  public  lands  would  of 
course   be  exhausted,   as  they   already   are  in  Ohio  and 
Indiana.     The  lands  in  the  possession  of  private  holders 
might  then  be  expected  to  bear  prices  compared  to  those  of 
Ohio  and  Indiana,  respectively,  in  the  proportion  of  their 
fertility  and  power  of  access  to  markets  for  their  produce. 

These  calculations  all  proceed  upon  the  hypothesis  that 
the  rate  of  increase  of  population  in  Illinois  is  to  continue 
the  same  for  the  next  thirteen  years  that  it  has  been  since 
1840.  There  are  obvious  reasons  why  a  much  more  rapid 
progress  might  be  counted  on,  if  it  were  not  wholly 


108 

unnecessary  to  make  out  a  stronger  case  than  this  estab- 
lishes for  us. 

During  the  last  ten  years  Illinois  has  labored  under  a 
debt  of  a  magnitude  absolutely  overwhelming  when  com- 
pared with  her  resources  at  the  commencement  of  that 
period.  She  had  then  before  her  a  very  gloomy  alternative. 
If  she  endeavored  to  meet  even  the  interest  of  her  obliga- 
tions she  would  be  crushed  under  the  weight  of  an  intoler- 
able taxation,  from  which  her  most  able  and  enterprising 
citizens  would  have  fled  into  other  States.  If  she  abandoned 
the  effort  in  despair  of  the  possibility  of  success,  then  she 
must  suffer  all  the  consequences  of  the  total  loss  of  credit 
consequent  on  her  bankruptcy.  In  neither  case  did  it  seem 
to  be  probable  that  her  public  works  could  be  made  available 
towards  the  discharge  of  the  debt  incurred  for  them,  or  aid 
to  develope  the  resources  of  the  State.  Why  should  an 
emigrant  from  the  old  world,  or  from  the  other  States,  with 
the  broad  valley  of  the  Mississippi  open  before  him  where 
to  choose,  voluntary  assume  a  full  share  of  these  embarrass- 
ments by  becoming  a  citizen  of  Illinois?  The  answer 
which  emigrants  have  given  to  this  question  may  be  seen 
in  the  settlement  of  Wisconsin,  which  State  with  a  colder 
climate  and  a  harder  soil  than  Illinois,  has  added  to  her 
population  more  than  eight  hundred  and  eighty  per  cent,  in 
the  last  ten  years,  a  progress  unprecedented  in  the  history 
of  the  world,  in  any  agricultural  community. 

Ten  years  ago,  Illinois,  borne  down  with  debt,  had  not 
only  not  a  mile  of  Railroad,  or  canal,  or  plank  road,  in 
operation  within  her  boarders,  but  no  reasonable  plan  had 
been  agreed  upon  by  which  she  could  hope  to  diminish  her 
debt,  discharge  her  interest,  or  acquire  facilities  of  commu- 
nication. She  has  now  her  canal  debt  rapidly  approaching 
towards  extinction,  revenues  sufficient  in  a  very  short 
time  to  discharge  her  whole  interest  without  increasing 
the  rate  of  taxation,  one  hundred  miles  of  canal,  and  a  still 
greater  length  of  Railroad,  in  highly  profitable  operation,  with 
plank  roads  in  great  numbers,  paying  dividends  large  enough 


109 

to  ensure  the  early  construction  of  several  thousand  miles 
more.  Not  only  so,  hut  she  has  before  her  the  certainty  that 
she  •will  be  supplied  with  more  than  twelve  hundred,  perhaps 
it  may  he  safely  said,  more  than  fifteen  hundred  miles  of  rail- 
road in  the  next  five  or  six  years  ;  and  channels  are  already 
constructed  to  convey  her  products,  transported  to  her 
boarders  on  these  Railroads,  through  Michigan,  Indiana, 
and  the  Eastern  States,  to  the  seaboard  and  abroad.  If, 
paralyzed  as  she  was  for  the  last  ten  years,  her  growth  was 
at  about  the  same  rate  as  that  of  Michigan,  having  less  than 
half  as  dense  a  population,  with  her  Railroads  and  her  lake 
boarders  and  her  steamboats  ;  about  the  same  as  that  of 
Missouri,  with,  only  two-thirds  as  dense  a  population,  and 
with  the  Queen  City  of  the  Great  River  in  her  centre, 
receiving  the  whole  current  of  emigration  up  the  Mississippi ; 
about  the  same  numerically  as  that  of  Wisconsin  and  Iowa 
together,  these  two  starting  with  a  hundred  thousand  square 
miles  of  land  unoccupied,  wholly  unencumbered  with  debt, 
and  accessible  from  the  lake  and  from  the  river  ;  why  should 
she  not,  in  her  present  healthy  condition,  her  limbs 
unshackled  and  her  pathway  free  before  her,  advance  with 
the  step  of  a  giant  refreshed,  towards  her  natural  position 
among  the  first  in  population,  power  and  wealth  of  the 
North  American  confederacy  of  States  ? 

Even  under  all  the  disadvantages  which  have  impeded  the 
progress  of  Illinois  during  the  last  ten  years,  disadvantages 
whose  effect  it  would  not  be  easy  to  over-estimate,  the 
growth  of  those  sections  of  the  State  which  can  be  easily 
reached  from  the  northeast  has  been  such  as  to  afford  an 
indication  of  what  may  be  expected  from  the  whole  area 
when  it  is  once  made  equally  accessible.  The  two  land 
districts  of  Chicago  and  Dixon,  forming  the  Northern  sec- 
tion of  the  State,  contain  together  14,126  square  miles,  or 
about  one-fourth  of  the  land  in  the  State.  This  Northern 
section  alone,  is  accessible  from  Lake  Michigan,  and  of 
course  has  received  the  whole  benefit,  in  common  with  the 
southeastern  part  of  Wisconsin,  of  the  lines  of  steamboats 
from  Buffalo  and  Detroit,  and  of  the  travel  over  the 


110 

Michigan  Central  Rail  Road.  It  had  by  the  last  census, 
two  hundred  and  fifty-five  thousand  eight  hundred  and 
seventy  inhabitants,  or  eighteen  to  the  square  mile  ;  and 
is  divided  into  twenty-four  counties.  If  we  take  separately 
the  northern  belt  across  the  whole  breadth  of  the  State  we 
shall  include  in  thirteen  counties,  every  county  within  fif- 
teen miles  of  which  the  Chicago  and  Galena  Rail  Road  route 
passes.  These  thirteen  counties  increased  about  two  hun- 
dred and  eighty  per  cent  in  the  last  ten  years  in  the  number 
of  their  inhabitants  ;  having  in  1840,  six  and  one-half  to  .a 
square  mile,  and  in  1850,  about  twenty-five  to  the  square 
mile. 

If  we  now  take  the  belt  directly  south  of  this,  including 
the  eleven  counties  which  constitute  the  remainder  of  the 
Chicago  and  Dixon  land  districts,  we  shall  find  that  these 
are  the  counties  accessible  from  the  Lake  through  the  Illinois 
and  Michigan  Canal.  These  eleven  counties  increased  in 
population  one  hundred  and  nine  per  cent,  in  the  last  ten 
years.  They  had,  in  1840,  five  and  one-third  inhabitants 
to  the  square  mile,  while  in  1850,  they  had  a  fraction  over 
eleven  to  the  square  mile.  The  remaining  seventy-five 
counties  of  the  State  having  no  convenient  access  from  the 
East  for  emigrants,  and  to  the  eastern  markets  for  produce, 
have  increased  fifty-two  and  a  half  per  cent,  in  ten  years  ; 
and  while  in  1840  they  had  nine  and  a  half  inhabitants  to 
the  square  mile,  or  fifty  per  cent,  more  than  the  northern 
section  in  1850,  they  had  but  fourteen  and  a  half  to  the 
square  mile,  or  little  more  than  half  the  average  density  of 
the  thirteen  northern  counties.  All  these  particulars  are 
more  distinctly  presented  in  the  following  table  : — 

Illinois.  Sq.  miles.    Pop.  1840.  Tosq.  m.  Pop.1850.  To  sq.m.Inc.pr.cl. 

13  Counties,  7,200       46,992       6.52     178,417       24.78       279.6 

11        "  6,926       37,057       5.35       77,393       11.17       109.0 


24  "  14,126  84049  5.95  255,810  18.10  204.3 

75  "  41,279  392,134  9.50  599,574  14.50  52.9 

__  t(  T                                L ^  _  _ 

99  "  55,405  475,183  8.59  855,384  15.04  79.2 


Ill 

The  twenty-four  counties,  therefore,  of  the  Chicago  and 
Dixon  land  districts  of  Illinois  exhibit,  and  enable  us  to 
measure  the  influence  of  Lake  Michigan  in  opening  a  cheap 
highway  to  the  vast  territory  upon  its  Western  boarders. 
This  increase  of  two  hundred  and  four  per  cent,  in  the 
population  of  an  area  larger  than  the  States  of  Massachu- 
setts, Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island  together,  has  occurred 
during  ten  years,  when  the  extraordinary  and  unprecedented 
prosperity  of  those  Atlantic  States,  whence  emigration  to 
the  West  has  been  generally  derived,  kept  at  home  on  the 
seaboard,  a  population  of  about  seven  hundred  thousand 
persons,  who  must  otherwise,  at  the  rate  at  which  popula- 
tion advanced  in  those  States,  during  the  next  preceding 
decade  of  years,  have  become  inhabitants  of  the  Mississippi 
Valley,  and  for  the  most  part,  of  the  northern  part  of  the 
Valley.  [See  Table  D.]  This  increase  of  two  hundred  and 
four  per  cent,  has  occurred  in  the  accessible  section  of 
Illinois,  in  ten  years  of  financial  embarrassment  and  State 
bankruptcy,  most  repelling  to  immigrant  settlers,  and  to 
know  how  far  these  circumstances  have  depressed  the 
growth  of  Northern  Illinois,  let  us  cross  the  boarder  line 
into  Wisconsin,  and  measure  there  the  effect  of  the  Lake 
as  a  great  avenue,  upon  the  portion  of  Wisconsin  open  to 
its  influence. 

If  we  draw  a  line  across  Wisconsin  from  Green  Bay  down 
the  Neenah  and  Wisconsin  rivers,  to  the  Mississippi,  we 
shall  leave  south  and  east  of  that  line  a  space  about  equal 
to  the  Chicago  and  Dixon  land  districts,  from  which,  as  well 
as  from  the  rest  of  the  State,  in  1840,  Black  Hawk  and  his 
warriors  had  been  not  long  expelled.  South  and  east  of 
the  dividing  line  are  twenty  counties  ;  north  and  west  of 
that  line  are  ten  counties,  not  yet  of  easy  access.  The 
growth  of  the  population  in  these  two  sections  is  as  fol- 
lows : — 

Wisconsin.    Sq.  miles.  Pop.  1840.  To  sq.  m.  Pop.  1850.  To  sq.  m.  In.  pr.  ct. 
20  Counties,     14,054        24/.70         1.77        278,535        19.97          1,029 
10        "  39,870          6,275          .15         27,003  .67  330.3 

30        "  53,924        30,945          .57        305,538          5.66  888.6 


112 

While,  therefore,  fourteen  thousand  miles  of  land  south 
of  the  boundary  between  Illinois  and  Wisconsin,  increased 
its  population  204  per  cent.,  the  same  quantity  of  similar 
lanp  adjoining  it,  but  north  of  that  boundary,  increased  its 
population  more  than  one  thousand  per  cent.  The  fear  of 
the  State  debt  counterbalanced  and  outweighed  the  disad- 
vantages of  a  colder  climate,  and  the  greater  expense  of 
clearing  woodland,  instead  of  simply  breaking  up  prarie. 
The  manner  in  which  such  a  tide  of  immigration  can  build 
up  a  city  may  be  seen  in  Milwaukie,  one  of  the  landing 
places  for  passengers  by  steamers  round  the  Lakes  from 
Buffalo ;  and  second  only  to  Chicago  among  the  ports  of 
the  upper  Lakes.  I  give  a  table  of  its  population  at  periods 
of  four  years  : 

Pop-idalion  of  Mdwaukie  from  1838  to  1850. 

1838    -        -       700  1846    -        -      9,655 

1842    -        -    2,700          1850    -        -    20,061 

The  State  debt  of  Illinois  has  ceased  to  cause  alarm.  It 
is  obvious  that  the  taxes  provided  for  in  the  Constitution,  of 
the  State,  levied  on  her  rapidly  increasing  property,  would 
soon  be  sufficient  to  meet  her  liabilities.  But  it  is  certain 
that  the  opening  of  her  great  system  of  Railroads  will  acceler- 
ate the  increased  valuation  of  her  property  by  many  millions 
annually,  while  her  share  of  the  gross  revenue  of  the  Central 
Road  will  enable  her  soon  after  that  road  is  opened,  to  begin 
rapidly  to  extinguish  her  debt.  This  obstacle  being  no 
longer  formidable,  the  central  and  southern  parts  of  Illinois 
are  now  ready  for  the  full  development  of  their  natural 
advantages.  The  remainder  of  the  State,  with  a  warmer 
climate  than  that  which  already  trebles  its  numbers  in  ten 
years  lessening  the  expense  of  shelter,  fuel  and  clothing  has 
also  a  soil  tillable  with  less  labor,  and  yielding  larger  har- 
vests, and,  underlying  many  thousand  miles  of  its  area,  one 
of  the  largest  coal  beds  in  the  world,  not  too  far  from  the 
surface,  and  in  many  parts  of  excellent  quality.  I 
say  nothing  of  the  metallic  minerals  of  Northwestern 
or  Southern  Illinois,  not  because  I  undervalue  them, 
but  because  I  cannot  extend  this  communication  to 


113 

do  justice  to  their  merits  ;  and  because  in  land  for  agricul- 
tural purposes  alone,  Illinois  has  wealth  enough  for  an 
empire.  Open  a  vent  for  her  products,  and  her  central  and 
southern  lands  will  be  sought  for  as  eagerly  as  those  have 
been  which  already  open  on  Lake  Michigan.  Difficult  of 
access  as  are  most  of  her  lands,  now  remaining  unsold,  they 
are  still  sought  for  in  much  larger  quantities  than  those  of 
any  other  new  State.  The  public  land  sold  in  the  seven 
Northwestern  States  during  the  year  ending  June  30th, 
1850,  before  the  projection  of  the  Central  Rail  Road  began 
to  influence  sales  in  Illinois,  was  distributed  as  follows  : 

Sales  of  land  in  the  seven  Northwestern  States  for  the  year 
ending  June  30th,  1850,  according  to  the  Report  of  the 
Secretary  of  the  Interior,  of  the  3d  December,  1850. 

Ohio,          34,677.25  acres.     Michigan,      48,675.04  acres. 
Indiana,    120,998.93     «         Wisconsin,  162,098.87      " 
Illinois,     275,119.48     "         Iowa,            112,832.75      « 

Missouri,     227,000.89      " 


430,795.66 


550,607.54 


It  will  be  seen  from  this  table  that  more  land  is  sold  in* 
proportion  to  their  area  in  the  three  older  States  of  Ohio, 
Indiana  and  Illinois,  than  in  the  four  younger  Northwestern 
States ;  and  almost  six  times  as  much  in  proportion  to  the 
land  remaining  unsold.  Almost  two-thirds  of  the  sales  in 
the  three  older  States  were  in  Illinois  ;  and  as  this  was  the 
case  before  the  passage  of  the  law  donating  lands  to  the 
Central  Railroad,  September,  1850,  it  will  be  readily  sup- 
posed that  since  that  date  the  sales  in  that  State  have  been 
much  more  rapid.  Indeed,  in  a  single  district  in  Illinois, 
in  which  the  sales  for  the  year  ending  June  30th,  1850, 
were  18,528.42  acres,  in  the  quarter  ending  June  30th,  1851, 
they  were  43,661,  or  nine  and  a  half  times  as  much  in  pro- 
portion to  the  time  as  before  the  act  of  donation.  This  has 
happened  while  the  land  within  fifteen  miles  of  the  Railroad 
is  reserved  from  sale.  I  have  not  yet  obtained  returns  from 
all  the  districts,  so  that  I  am  unable  to  make  the  compari- 
son for  the  whole  State. 


114 

It  may  be  interesting  to  inquire  how  the  density  of  popu- 
lation, and  sales  of  land,  of  different  parts  of  the  State, 
compare  with  each  other,  in  order  to  judge  how  far  these 
facts  furnish  evidence  of  the  comparative  value  of  the  Com- 
pany's lands.  It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  these  lands 
are  situated  mostly  in  the  three  districts  of  Dixon,  Danville, 
and  Vandalia,  and  that  these  districts,  being  the  least  ac- 
cessible in  the  State,  have  been  of  course,  the  last  to  be 
settled.  Railroad  communication  has  not  yet  reached  an 
acre  of  land  in  either  of  these  districts.  If,  therefore,  the 
lands  are  rapidly  taken  up,  and  settlers  are  pouring  into 
these  districts,  it  is  because  of  the  intrinsic  fertility  of  the 
soil,  and  the  confidence,  gro>ying  every  day  stronger,  that 
communications  will  soon  be  opened. 

Illinois  is  divided  into  ten  land  districts.  Of  these,  two, 
Chicago  and  Quincy,  the  former  lying  on  Lake  Michigan, 
and  including  the  principal  Railroad,  and  the  Canal  of  the 
State,  the  latter  lying  between  the  Mississippi  and  Illinois 
Rivers,  with  almost  every  township  in  it  within  thirty  miles 
of  steamboat  navigation,  have,  in  the  aggregate,  more  than 
.eight  millions  of  acres  of  land,  of  which  one-tenth  remains 
unsold.  When  it  is  considered  that  the  lands  unsold  in 
these  two  districts  are  not  quite  sufficient  to  furnish  farms 
of  the  average  Illinois  size,  for  one  year's  increase  of  their 
population,  it  is  plain  that,  in  estimating  the  unsold  lands 
which  are  to  come  into  competition  with  those  of  the  Com- 
pany, we  may  omit  the  Chicago  and  Quincy  districts  entire- 
ly, without  materially  affecting  the  result.  The  three  dis- 
tricts which  include  most  of  the  Company's  land,  Dixon, 
Danville  and  Vandalia,  have  thirteen  million  eight  hundred 
thousand  acres  of  land,  of  which  about  one  half  is  unsold ; 
while  the  remaining  five  districts  have  thirteen  million  four 
hundred  thousand  acres,  of  which  about  one-fourth  part  re- 
mains unsold. 

The  comparative  density  of  the  population  of  these  sec- 
tions, and  their  increase,  with  the  number  of  acres  in  each, 
will  appear  in  the  following  tables. 


115 


DISTRIBUTION    AND    PROGRESS     OF     THE     POPULATION    OF 

ILLINOIS,    CONSIDERED    BY    LAND     DISTRICTS,     FROM 

1840    TO   1850. 


Districts.         Sq.  mil  a.  Acres. 

Ctuincy,        7,073       4,526,636.26 
Chicago,       5,777       3,697,068.60 


Pop.  1840.  To  iq.  mile  .Pop.1850,  To  tg.  mile. 
87,448  1236  154,635  21.9 
48,416  8.38  160,500  27.8 


12.850 

8,223,704  86 

136,864 

10.65 

315,135 

24.51 

Dixon,         8.349 

5,343,471.73 

35,633 

4.26 

96370 

11.56 

Danville,      7,705 

4;93  1,334.79 

27,932 

3.62 

55,093 

7.15 

Vandalia,     5;516 

3.530,401.00 

22,632 

4.10 

36,775 

6.67 

21,570 

13.805.-J07  53 

86,197 

400 

188,238 

8.72 

Five  other,  20,985 

13,410,287.62 

253,122 

1200 

352,011 

16,76 

Total,      55,405      35,439,200.00      477,183         8.59       855,384      1544 


RECAPITULATION. 


Pop.  1850. 

duincy  and  Chicago,  315,135 

Dixon,  Danville  and  Vandalia,  188,238 
Five  other,       -       -       -          352,011 


In  per ct.  Pop.1860.  Mpr.  ct.To tq.m. 
130.26  724,810  1.30  56.4 
11838  414,123  1.20  19.2 
39.07  492.815  .40  23.4 


Total  of  Illinois, 


855,334        79,63     1,631,784        90      29.4 


This  table  shows  that  the  districts  in  which  the  land  is 
mostly  sold  have  a  density  of  population  (24.51)  almost  three 
times  as  great  as  those  in  which  the  land  is  less  than  half 
sold  (8.72 ;)  but  that  these  thinly  settled  districts,  with  a 
population  of  about  half  the  density  of  the  other  five  dis- 
tricts, (16.76,)  are  increasing  three  times  as  rapidly ;  and 
what  is  still  more  extraordinary,  almost  as  fast  as  those  two 
districts  which  enjoy  the  benefit  of  the  steamers  round  the 
Lakes  and  on  the  Mississippi  and  Illinois,  of  the  Canal,  the 
Michigan  Central,  and  Chicago  and  Galena  Railroads.  The 
table  gives  the  population  and  the  density  at  which  each 
division  would  arrive  in  1860,  at  the  same  rate  of  progress, 
in  round  numbers,  as  for  the  last  ten  years.  But  it  is  not 
reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  same  rate  will  continue  in 
the  two  districts,  which  in  1853,  will  be  as  populous  as  In- 
diana. Their  land  sells  at  high  prices  already,  and  the 
opening  of  the  new  channels  may  divert  emigration  which 


116 

would  otherwise  have  settled  there.  An  addition  of  two- 
thirds  their  present  numbers  to  these  two  districts  is  quite 
as  much  as  can  safely  be  calculated  on  while  the  thinly  set- 
tled districts  may  be  expected  to,  at  least,  double  their  rate 
of  progress,  from  the  influence  of  the  Railroad.  As  the 
other  five  districts  will  all  be  greatly  benefited  by  their  con- 
nection with  the  road,  it  is  not  too  much  to  expect  that  they 
also  will  double  their  rate,  and  increase,  say  eighty  per  cent, 
in  the  next  ten  years. 

Proceeding  on  these  data,  we  shall  have  the  following 
estimate  of  the  population  of  Illinois  for  1860  : — 

Districts.                                     Rate  of  Inc.  Pop.  I860.  To  sq.  mils. 

Q,uincy  and  Chicago,                                  66f  525,225           40.87 

Dixon,  Danville  and  Vandalia,        -         240  640,009           29.67 

Other  five, 80  633,620           30.2 

Total  of  Illinois,        -       -       -  110.4         1,798,854  32.47 

Suppose  this  estimate  to  be  realized,  and  these  three  dis- 
tricts of  Dixon,  Danville  and  Vandalia,  will  offer  still  stronger 
inducements  to  the  emigrant  than  any  other  portion  of  the 
West.  They  would  still  have  a  population  less  dense  than 
the  average  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  but  not  less  fertile,  nor 
less  accessible.  Land  would  still  be  cheaper  in  Illinois  than 
in  Ohio,  or  in  Indiana,  because  the  settlement  would  still  be 
much  less  dense  than  in  those  two  States.  Ohio  increasing 
at  thirty  per  cent,  will  have  64.47  to  the  square  mile  in  1860. 
Indiana,  if  she  increases  at  forty-five  per  cent,  only,  and 
there  are  obvious  reasons  why  the  rate  should  be  greater, 
will  have  42.47  to  the  square  mile:  Illinois  only  32.47. 
The  older  States  east  of  Illinois,  including  Ohio  and 
Indiana,  are  therefore  full,  and  emigrants  will  pass  through 
them,  and  by  them,  to  Illinois,  to  land  which  is  both  cheaper 
and  better,  for  the  same  reasons  that  they  have  done  so 
heretofore. 

But,  it  may  be  asked,  will  not  a  larger  portion  of  the 
additional  population  coming  into  the  valley  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, diverge  into  the  new  States,  and  so  be  drawn  off  from 
Illinois  ? 


117 

Certainly  not  to  the  inaccessible  portions  of  those  States  ; 
because  a  bushel  of  corn  costing  six  cents,  which  can  be 
carried  for  thirty  cents  to  a  market  where  it  will  sell  for 
thirty- six  cents,  is  not  worth  so  much  as  a  bushel  of  corn 
costing  twenty  cents,  which  can  be  carried  for  ten  cents  to 
the  same  market  and  sold  for  the  same  price  of  thirty-six 
cents.  A  saving  of  twenty  cents  per  bushel  on  the  trans- 
portation of  your  corn  is  the  saving  of  ten  dollars  on  the 
crop  of  an  acre,  reckoned  at  fifty  bushels  ;  and  this  sum  is 
twenty  per  cent,  interest  on  a  first  cost  of  fifty  dollars  per 
acre.  It  will  be  better  econony,  therefore,  taking  the  arti- 
cle of  corn  as  a  criterion,  to  buy  land  in  the  south  part  of 
the  Danville  district,  at  fifty  dollars  the  acre,  when  the  price 
by  competition  for  it,  shall  have  been  raised  so  high,  and 
you  have  a  double  track  Railroad  within  twelve  miles  of 
your  farm,  than  it  would  have  been  to  buy  the  same  land,  at 
a  dollar  and  a  quarter  per  acre,  when  there  was  no  practi- 
cable outlet  for  your  produce. 

But  will  not  Railroads  be  built  opening  up  these  vast 
tracts  of  unoccupied  land,  so  as  to  bring  them  into  market  ? 
Doubtless  to  some  extent,  but  in  a  very  limited  proportion 
to  the  whole  surface.  It  is  a  much  more  promising  enter- 
prise to  build  Railroads  through  regions  having  already  from 
twenty  to  fifty  inhabitants  to  the  square  mile,  where  the 
way  travel  is  to  be  depended  upon,  than  to  make  your  road 
through  uninhabited  wastes,  and  wait  for  population  and 
business  to  follow  it.  If,  however,  the  through  travel  of  a 
long  route  is  thought  a  more  desirable  object,  there  is  no 
new  route  connecting  the  Lakes  with  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  or 
the  northeastern  States  with  the  western,  or  southwestern 
that  will  run  through  Northern  Michigan,  or  Wisconsin,  or 
Iowa,  or  Missouri.  The  Railroads  built  in  these  States. 
then,  for  the  next  ten  or  fifteen  years,  will  be  for  the  local 
business  and  travel  of  sections  where  business  and  popula- 
tion are  already  collected  ;  gradually,  of  course,  extending 
their  sphere  of  action  as  population  advances,  but  not  rush- 
ing suddenly  beyond  it. 

11 


118 

In  these  accessible  sections  of  the  four  States  spoken  of, 
Railroads  will  be  built  as  they  ought  to  be,  because  the 
population  and  business  either  are,  or  very  soon  will  be, 
sufficient  to  support  Railroads  profitably.  But  these  ac- 
cessible sections  do  not  now,  and  will  not  for  twenty  years 
at  least,  if  ever,  offer  the  inducement  of  cheaper  land  than 
Illinois,  especially  the  Dixon,  Danville  and  Vandalia  districts. 

We  shall  the  better  realize  the  certainty  of  these  views, 
if  we  divide  each  of  the  four  younger  northwestern  States 
into  two  portions,  the  smaller  portion  in  each  State  that  of 
convenient  access  and  comparatively  dense  population  ;  the 
larger  portion  that  at  a  distance  from  the  great  channels  of 
communication,  and  as  yet  but  very  sparsely  settled.  The 
contrast  is  very  striking,  and  deserves  to  be  carefully  studi- 
ed by  those  investigating  the  probabilities  of  Western 
Railroad  enterprises.  The  State  of  Michigan  is  first  to  be 
considered,  because  it  is  nearest  to  the  dense  masses  of 
population  in  the  northeast,  and  to  the  Atlantic  ports, 
through  which  emigrants  arrive,  in  passing  from  the  old 
world  to  cheap  land  at  the  west.  In  the  southeastern  part 
of  the  State  is  the  Key  to  the  intercourse  between  the  basin 
of  three  upper  Lakes,  and  that  of  the  lower  Lakes  and  the 
St.  Lawrence  ;  as  well  as  through  these  to  the  Mississippi, 
on  the  one  hand,  and  the  northeastern  hive  upon  the  other. 
The  great  current  of  emigration,  which  builds  up  cities  and 
States,  passes  through  this  section  at  Detroit.  The  marked 
points  along  the  line  of  this  current  will  aid  as  to  measure 
its  influence.  They  are,  with  their  population  in  1840  and 
1850,  as  follows : 

1840.  1850. 

New-York,  - '.'.'  315,394  412,712 

Buffalo,       .  .  18,213  40,266 

Detroit,       .  -  .  9,102  21,057 

Chicago,      .  .  M  4,479  28.269 

St.  Louis,   .  ...  16,468  92,744 

From  Detroit,  the  Michigan  Central  Railroad  extends 
to  the  west,  and  if  we  take  the  first  four  counties  on  this 


119 

road,  with  the  first  three  south,  and  the  first  two  north  of 
them,  we  have  together  nine  counties,  with  much  more  than 
half  the  population  of  the  State.  These  counties  so  favora- 
bly situated  to  receive  emigrants,  and  to  forward  produce, 
will  of  course,  continue  to  prosper  and  increase ;  but  those 
in  search  of  cheap  lands  will  not  stop  here,  because  the 
density  of  settlement,  and  the  price  of  land,  are  both  much 
higher  than  in  Illinois,  and  will  be  so  for  the  next  twenty 
years.  In  the  distant  part  of  the  State,  cheap  land  can  be 
found,  but  not  more  eligible  than  that  of  Illinois. 

The  next  State  on  the  highway  of  the  Lakes,  after  passing 
Michigan,  is  Wisconsin  ;  the  division  of  whose  area  into  two 
parts,  the  one  having  a  population  about  thirty  times  as 
dense  as  the  other,  I  have  already  noticed.  The  denser 
portion  has  also  increased  three  times  as  rapidly  as  the  re- 
mainder, and  is  just  beginning  to  enjoy  the  advantages  of 
Railroad  communication.  It  has  more  than  twice  the 
average  density  of  population  (19.97)  belonging  to  the 
Dixon,  Danville  and  Vandalia  districts,  (8.72,)  and  will  cer- 
tainly continue  for  more  than  twenty  years  more  densely 
settled,  and  with  land  at  higher  prices,  than  those  three 
districts  of  Illinois. 

If  we  cross  Illinois  by  the  Canal,  and  the  Illinois  river,  a 
cheap  and  convenient  navigation,  we  next  arrive  at  Missouri. 
a  State  centrally  situated,  and  commanding  a  large  share  of 
western  trade.  She  naturally  receives  the  vast  multitudes 
of  emigrants  from  Europe  arriving  at  New  Orleans,  and  has 
her  choice  of  avenues  to  the  markets  of  the  world,  down  the 
"Mississippi  by  magnificent  and  numerous  steamboats  ;  or 
across  the  country  to  the  east,  by  the  various  channels 
recently  opened,  or  yet  to  be  completed.  The  longest 
watercourse  in  the  world,  the  Missouri,  hurrying  its  turbid 
tribute  from  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
passes  transversely  from  the  northwestern  angle  of  the  State, 
directly  through  its  centre.  Upon  both  sides  of  this  river, 
from  the  mouth  of  the  Nodaway  to  the  Mississippi,  there 
are  twenty-three  counties,  having  less  than  a  sixth  of  the 


surface,  but  nearly  half  the  population  of  the  State.  These 
twenty-three  counties  have  31.76  inhabitants  to  the  square 
mile,  and  -will  be  more  densely  peopled  than  the  three 
districts  with  which  I  compare  them,  till  long  after  those 
districts  have  acquired  a  density  greater  than  that  of  Ohio. 

The  State  of  Iowa  remains  to  be  considered.  She  is  still 
further  than  the  rest  from  the  sources  of  emigration  and 
from  available  markets.  Eighteen  counties  in  the  south- 
eastern part  of  this  State,  with  less  than  a  fifth  of  her  ter- 
ritory, have  a  population  twelve  times  as  dense  as  the 
remainder,  increasing  and  likely  to  increase  with  great 
rapidity.  The  lands  of  these  eighteen  counties  are,  and  for 
many  years  will  be,  more  densely  settled  than  those  of  the 
three  districts  in  question. 

These  particulars  appear  more  distinctly  in  the  following 
table,  in  which  I  have  first  divided  the  population  of  each 
State  between  the  densely  and  the  sparsely  settled  portions 
of  territory,  and  showing  the  inhabitants  to  each  square 
mile  in  each  portion  ;  and  have  then  shown  the  density  of 
population,  at  a  probable  rate  of  increase  in  1860,  supposing 
the  increase  to  be  twice  as  rapid  in  the  sparsely  settled  as 
in  the  densely  settled  counties. 

Division  of  population  between  the  more  accessible  and 
the  less  accessible  portions  of  the  four  younger  North- 
western States  for  1850 ,  and  for  1860,  at  certain 
assumed  rates  of  increase. 

Sq.  milts.   To  iq.  mile'.  In.  pr.  ct,  Sq.mile  tnlSCO 

Michigan,      9  Counties,       -         4,420  49.21  50  73.82 

23  51,823  3.56  100  7.12 

Wisconsin,  20  -       -      14,054  19.97  200  58.91 

"  10  -  39,870  .67  400  3.35 

Missouri,  23  -  -  10,350  31.76  50  47.64 

"  78  '  -'  57,030  6.20  100  12.40 

Iowa,  18  -  9,000  14.80  125  33.30 

"           33  .  ^ ,        41,914  1.17  250  4.09 

The  denser  counties  of  these  States  will  hold  their  land 
much  higher  in  1860  than  the  Dixon,  Danville  and  Vanda- 


121 

lia  districts  in  Illinois.  Into  the  sparsely  settled  counties, 
Railroads  can  hardly  begin  to  run  profitably  until  after  1860. 
Illinois  will  continue  to  offer  the  largest  supply  of  compara- 
tively cheap,  accessible,  fertile,  and  in  all  respects  eligible 
land,  until  long  after  the  prices  of  land  along  the  line  of  her 
great  Railroad  have  risen  beyond  the  average,  at  the  official 
valuation  of  the  lands  of  Ohio  at  the  present  day. 

The  aggregates  of  these  dense  portions  together,  and  of 
the  sparse  regions,  are  as  follows : 

Portions  dense  enough,  to  support  Railroads. 

States.  Sq.  miles.  Pop.  in  1850.  Pop.  in  1860,  Inc  in  10  ys, 

Michigan, 
Wisconsin, 
Missouri,    - 
Iowa, 

36,824  359,924         1,954,561          104 

Per  square  mile  in  1850,  25.32    In  I860,  51.15. 

Portions  too  sparsely  settled  to  support  Railroads. 

Michigan, 
Wisconsin, 
Missouri, 
Iowa, 

190,637  624,346        1,418,324         127 

Per  square  mile  in  1850,  3.27.    In  I860,  7.44. 

Having  gone  over  all  the  Northwestern  States  separate- 
ly, I  will  now  recapitulate  and  give  the  total  for  each  State, 
with  the  population  for  1860,  at  the  rate  of  increase  as- 
sumed. 


4,420 

217,529 

326,293 

50 

14,054 

278,535 

835,605 

200 

10,350 

328,695 

493,042 

50 

9,000 

133,165 

299,621 

125 

51,823 
39,870 

184,512 
27,003 

369,024 
135,015 

100 
400 

57,030 
41,914 

353,749 
59,082 

707,498 
206,787 

100 
250 

122 


Population  of  the  Northwestern  States  for  1860,  at  the 
rates  of  increase  assumed  in  the  foregoing  remarks  with 
the  number  per  square  mile. 


States.  Sq.  milet. 

Ohio,  39,964 

Indiana,  33,809 

Illinois,  55,405 


Pop.  1850.  Pr.sq.rn.ile. 

1,981,940  49,59 
990,258  29,29 
855,384  15.45 


Pop.1860,  Pr.sq.  mile.  Inc.pr.ct. 

2,576,522  64  47     30.0 

1,435,874  42,47     45.0 

1,798,854  32.47    110.4 


129,178   3,827,582   29.63   5,811,250   44.99 


51.8 


Michigan,  56,243 

402,041 

7.15 

695,317 

1236 

7294 

Wisconsin,53,924 

305538 

5.65 

970,620 

18.00 

220.95 

Missouri,    67,380 

682,044 

10.12 

1,200,540 

1782 

76.02 

Iowa,          50,914 

192,247 

3.77 

506,408 

9.94 

163.42 

228,461         1,581,870         6.92       3,372,885        14.76         113.2 


RECAPITULATION. 


3  older  States, 

4  newer    " 


Pop.  1350.      Pnq.miU.      Pop.  1860.    Prsq.mile.     Inc  pr.ct. 
3,827,582        29.63        5,811,250        44.99        51.8 
1.581,870          6.92        3.372,885        14.76    (.113.2 


7  Northwestern,       5,409,452        11.82       9,184,135       20.07      69.78 

This  table  does  not  afford  any  reason  to  apprehend  that 
that  the  northwest  will  be  overstocked  with  population,  so 
that  immigration  will  be  checked  for  want  of  space  in  which 
to  expand  itself.  These  seven  States,  if  they  advance  as 
supposed  above,  will  still  fall  short  of  the  density  of  the 
great  States  of  Virginia,  the  Carolinas,  Kentucky  and  Ten- 
nessee, which  with  216,532  square  miles  of  territory,  have 
4,961,542  inhabitants,  or  an  average  of  22.91  to  the  square 
mile.  The  whole  economy  of  cultivation  in  the  northwest  is 
so  different  from  that  of  these  States,  that  it  will  support 
from  three  times  to  four  times  the  population,  before  the 
symptoms  of  too  crowded  a  condition  of  agricultural  labor 
will  manifest  themselves  as  they  do  in  the  older  Southern 
States.  The  Northwestern  States  have  also  improved  their 
means  of  communication  already,  much  more  extensively 
than  the  older  Southern  States.  In  addition  to  about  a 
thousand  miles  of  canals  now  in  operation,  they  have  in 


123 

operation,  and  in  the  course  of  constuction  more  than  five 
thousand  miles  of  Railroads.  The  five  southern  States 
named  have  about  twenty-six  hundred  miles.  Where  the 
best  system  of  internal  improvements  has  been  carried  out, 
there  the  rate  of  increase  has  not  been  checked  by  the  den- 
sity of  population,  but  on  the  contrary,  sections  that  seemed 
to  be  almost  stationary  have  advanced  rapidly  since  the 
opening  of  their  Railroads.  If  we  omit  the  State  of  Maine, 
which  has  but  one  mile  of  Railroad  to  135  square  miles  of 
her  surface,  while  the  rest  of  New  England  has  one  mile  of 
Railroad  to  eleven  miles  of  surface,  we  shall  find  the  other 
five  New  England  States,  which  increased  but  11.43  per 
cent,  from  1830  to  1840,  increasing  23.75  per  cent,  from 
1840  to  1850,  or  twice  as  rapidly.  This  increase  is  most 
marked  in  the  three  States  of  Massachusetts,  Connecticut 
and  Rhode  Island ;  these  three  States,  averaging  more  than 
one  hundred  inhabitants  to  the  square  mile,  but  having  one 
mile  of  Railroad  to  every  seven  and  a  half  square  miles  of 
surface.  The  proportion  in  England  and  Wales  is  about 
one  mile  of  Railroad  to  ten  miles  of  surface.  No  other  part 
of  the  United  States  is  so  well  supplied  with  Railroad  faci- 
lities as  the  northeastern  section  of  Massachusetts,  includ- 
ing the  counties  of  Essex,  Middlesex,  Suffolk  and  Norfolk. 
These  four  counties  have  one  mile  of  Railroad  to  about  four 
miles  of  surface.  They  have  considerably  more  than  three 
hundred  inhabitants  to  the  square  mile,  a  denser  population 
than  that  of  England  and  Wales,  notwithstanding  which 
they  have  gained  in  the  last  ten  years  more  than  forty- 
seven  per  cent,  in  population,  advancing  from  350,511  in 
1840,  to  516,212  in  1850,  and  having  now  more  than  half 
the  population  of  the  State. 

This  remarkable  result  is  due,  it  must  be  confessed,  to 
the  decided  tendency  of  Railroad  facilities  to  concentrate 
business  and  population  in  towns  and  cities  at  the  most 
convenient  points.  The  tract  through  which  the  Illinois 
Central  Railroad  is  to  pass  is  mostly  destitute  of  cities  and 
towns,  but  these  must  be  built  up  at  intervals,  along  the 
new  channels  of  intercouse  which  we  are  about  to  open,  as 


Chicago,  Milwaukie,  and  so  many  other  centres  of  distribu- 
tion and  exchange  have  been  already  on  the  Lake  and  on 
the  rivers.  As  the  population  grows  denser  wealth  will  ac- 
cumulate, not  in  the  same  proportion  to  population  certain- 
ly, as  at  the  head-quarters  of  American  Railroads — the  State 
of  Massachusetts,  whose  wealth  has  doubled  in  the  last  ten 
years — but  rapidly  enough  to  improve  constantly  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  inhabitants,  and  of  course  to  raise  the 
value  of  the  land  in  a  greater  ratio  than  the  increase  of 
numbers.  I  say  it  is  not  to  be  expected  that  individual 
wealth  should  accumulate  as  rapidly  in  Illinois  as  it  has 
done  for  the  last  ten  years  in  Massachusetts  ;  the  last  ten 
years  having  been  precisely  the  period  of  the  greatest  pros- 
perity and  most  rapid  progress  that  Massachusetts  has  ever 
known.  Yet  in  that  portion  of  Illinois  most  easily  accessi- 
ble from  Lake  Michigan,  and  on  the  line  of  the  Railroad  to 
Xjralena,  not  only  has  population  quadrupled  in  the  last  ten 
years,  but  the  wealth  was  six  times  as  great  in  1849  as  it 
was  nine  years  before ;  so  that  the  shares  of  the  individual 
inhabitants  increased  faster  than  even  in  Massachusetts, 
where  profits  are  annually  re-invested  from  the  accumulated 
capital  of  more  than  two  hundred  years. 

In  Massachusetts  the  valuation  of  1840  was  a  little  less 
than  three  hundred  millions  of  dollars,  or  more  than  four 
hundred  dollars  per  head.  In  1850,  it  was  a  little  less  than 
six  hundred  millions,  or  a  fraction  above  six  hundred  dol- 
lars per  head;  so  that  each  man's  share  had  increased  fifty 
per  cent,  in  ten  years,  a  prosperity  not  unenviable.  In  the 
thirteen  northern  counties  of  Illinois,  as  may  be  seen  in 
Table  E,  the  aggregate  wealth  which  in  1840  was  $3,630,040 
had  risen  to  $21,942,239  in  18 i9,  or  from  $77.25  per  head 
to  $134.27  per  head.  The  same  rate  of  increase  per  head 
would  make  each  individual's  share  exceed  two  hundred  and 
sixty  dollars  in  1860  ;  and  if  we  suppose  the  population  of 
these  counties  to  increase  only  two-thirds  in  the  next  ten 
years,  about  three  hundred  thousand  inhabitants  would  pos- 
sess about  seventy-eight  millions  of  dollars'  worth  of  property. 
This  amount  gives  $16.91  per  acre  for  the  whole  area  of 


125 

these  thirteen  counties,  and  if  we  allow  the  land  to  consti- 
tute two-thirds  of  the  valuation,  which  is  much  less  than 
its  true  proportion,  it  gives  more  than  ten  dollars  per  acre 
as  the  price  of  land. 

The  experience  of  Illinois  shows,  therefore,  that  as  her 
population  becomes  more  dense,  their  wealth  has  increased 
in  a  ratio  quite  sufficient  for  the  purpose  of  the  present  ex- 
amination. Is  there  any  reason  to  fear  that  her  lands  will 
offer  fewer  inducements  to  emigrants  in  future,  or  that  less 
success  will  attend  those  who  occupy  them  ?  It  is  obvious 
that  the  answer  to  this  question  depends  much  on  deter- 
mining whether  the  produce  of  these  lands  can  be  profitably 
taken  to  market,  and  whether  the  world  furnishes  markets 
sufficient  to  take  off  the  immense  surplus  they  are  to  yield. 

Corn  was  carried  during  the  summer  from  a  point  several 
miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  Illinois  river  down  to  the 
Illinois,  thence  up  that  river  to  the  Canal,  thence  to  Chica- 
go, and  thence  to  New- York,  and  there  sold  at  a  profit. 
Corn  was  not  low  in  Illinois  last  summer,  but  in  New- York 
it  was  considerably  lower  than  the  average  of  the  last  four 
years.  Corn  will  go  to  market  cheaper  from  the  lands  in 
the  Danville  district,  on  the  line  of  the  Chicago  branch  of 
the  Central  Road,  than  from  the  point  of  shipment  on  the 
Mississippi  first  referred  to.  Corn  is  so  cheap  and  bulky, 
that  all  other  agricultural  produce  may  be  carried  much 
further  on  the  Railroad  without  too  great  an  addition  to  its 
price.  All  produce  for  which  a  market  can  be  found  at  the 
seaboard  will  bear  the  cost  of  transportation  from  Illinois. 

Nor  need  we  be  alarmed  at  the  vast  amounts  of  produce 
which  these  unsettled  tracts  are  capable  of  yielding.  The 
Northwest  never  received  so  great  an  accession  to  its  popu- 
lation in  any  equal  period  as  in  the  last  five  years ;  the 
emigration  from  foreign  countries,  most  of  which  passes  to 
the  northwest,  having  risen  to  299,610  in  1849,  and  to 
315,333  in  1850,  instead  of  less  than  fifty  thousand  a  year 
as  it  was  formerly.  Yet  with  this  unparalleled  increase  of 


126 

laborers  cultivating  the  richest  soil  of  the  world,  with  the 
new  avenues  to  market  that  have  been  opened  during  that 
time,  all  pouring  to  the  seaboard  the  surplus  of  a  succession 
of  bountiful  harvests,  in  quantities  unheard  of  before,  and  at 
much  lower  freights  than  before,  the  supply  has  not  kept 
pace  with  the  demand,  as  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  agricul- 
tural products,  almost  without  exception,  have  borne  much 
higher  prices  during  the  last  four  years  than  during  the  four 
next  preceding.  The  following  are  the  average  prices  of 
the  whole  quantities  of  some  of  the  principle  articles  export- 
ed from  the  United  States  during  the  two  periods  : 

Flour,    1843-4-5  and  6    $4.79      1847-8-9-50  $5.77 
Wheat,      "     «  "  «         .96|        "    "  "    "      1.29J 

Corn,         "     "  "  «         .55          "    «  "    " 


The  prices  of  pork  and  other  animal  products  differ  also, 
in  about  the  same  proportion.  The  difference  extends  also 
to  southern  products,  so  that  labor  will  not  be  diverted  at 
the  South  from  their  peculiar  staples,  to  wheat,  corn,  pork, 
and  the  articles  which  now  employ  northwestern  labor.  The 
prices  were, 

Cotton,    1843-4-5-6  cts.  6.8728    1847-8-9-50  cts.  8.417 
Rice,  "    "  "     $17.66  "     «  «  "  $22.24 

Tobacco,       "    «  "       52.15  «     «  «  «    59.47 

Stimulated  by  this  rise  of  prices,  the  exports  of  the  last 
four  years  exceeded  those  of  the  four  years  previous,  in 
vegetable  food  and  the  products  of  animals  alone,  by  about 
one  hundred  millions  of  dollars  in  the  total. 

The  animal  products  exported  from  1843  to 

1846,  inclusive,  were  valued  at,       .        .  $24,153,331 
And  the  vegetable  food  at,      .        .        .        47,335,438 


Making  an  aggregate  of,     .        .        .        .  $71,488,769 


127 

But  during  the  period  from  1847  to  1850,  in- 
clusive, the  exports  of  animal  products  were 
about  doubled,  and  amounted  to,  .  $  47,354,655 

The  vegetable  food  was  more  than  doubled, 
being, 123,720,738 


$171,075,393 
Subtract  amount  in  previous  four  years,          71,488,769 


$99,586,624 

Reference  to  table  F  will  show  how  this  excess  is  divided 
between  the  different  years,  and  how  much  of  it  is  due  to 
the  year  of  famine,  1847.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  animal 
products  exhibit  a  higher  average  since,  than  during  that 
year,  while  the  vegetable  food  averages  three  times  what  it 
was  in  1844  and  1845,  before  the  rise  of  prices  commenced 
in  1846.  It  is  true  that  the  exports  of  vegetable  food 
declined  in  amount  in  1850,  but  they  are  now  very  large, 
and  likely  to  continue  so.  For  instance,  the  exports  to 
Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  from  the  first  of  September, 
1850,  to  the  31st  of  August,  1851,  were, 

Of  Flour,        .  .        1,581,702  bbls.    Wheat,  1,523,908  bushels. 

Same  dates  year  previous,    473,460    "  "         463,015        " 

Excess  of  the  present  year,  1,108,242  1,000,893 

More  than  one  million  of  barrels  of  flour,  and  one  million  of 
bushels  of  wheat ;  against  which  offset  the  falling  off  of 
corn. 

Exports  of  Corn  1850,    .        .        .      $4,873,446 
"  "    1851,        .        .  2,368,860 


Falling  off,   .        .        .      $2,504,586 

The  exports  of  the  South  increase  also,   which  is  an 
important  element  in  the  prosperity  of  the  Northwest ;  first 


128 

because  the  South,  while  her  peculiar  staples  are  profitable, 
will  not  compete  in  foreign  markets  with  large  supplies  of 
food,  which  she  could  easily  furnish  if  her  industry  were 
directed  to  that  object ;  second,  because  the  South,  in  years 
of  prosperous  export  of  her  staples  consumes  vast  quan- 
tities of  Northwestern  products,  which  she  might  otherwise 
raise  at  home.  The  export  of  her  three  chief  articles 
were, 

1843  to  1846,  1847  to  1849. 

Cotton,        .        .        .    $197,690,291    $253,795,725 
Tobacco, .        .        .  28,996,314        30,548,438 

Rice,   ....          8,600,207        11,138,639 


$235,286,812    $295,482,802 

The  addition  of  another  year  to  the  last  total  would  make 
the  average  annual  gain  much  more  marked,  as  the  quantity 
of  cotton  was  far  greater  in  1851.  than  in  1850,  and  the 
price  for  the  fiscal  year  much  higher  per  pound.  With  the 
prospect  of  a  large  crop  for  the  next  year's  exports,  the 
price  is  still  nearly  thirty  per  cent,  higher  than  from  1843 
to  1846.  The  quantity  forwarded  to  Great  Britain,  to  the 
31st  August,  Ibis  year,  was  .  .  .  1,418,265 

To  same  date  last  year,          .         .         .         1,106,711 

Increase,    ....        311,554 
Total  export,  this  year,        .        .   1,988,710  bales. 
"        "        last  year,     .        .       1,590,155     " 


Increase,        .        .      398,555 

The  next  year's  export  will  show  a  large  increase  on  this 
amount. 

That  all  these  products  both  those  of  the  North  and  those 
of  the  South,  if  they  are  exported  in  greater  quantities  than 
formerly  at  higher  prices,  would  be  required  and  consumed 
abroad  in  quantities  still  more  rapidly  increased,  if  they 
were  afforded  at  lower  prices  than  from  1843  to  1846,  is 
almost  too  obvious  to  be  stated;  and  yet  it  is  equally 
obvious  that  the  prices  might  be  reduced  considerably 


129 

below  those  of  the  former  period  to  the  consumer,  and  yet 
leave  a  much  larger  remuneration  than  before  in  the  hands 
of  the  original  producer,  because  of  the  saving  of  so  large  a 
part  of  the  addition  made  to  the  cost  of  the  article  in  the 
expense  of  transportation.  The  increased  power  of  con- 
sumption of  the  inhabitants  of  Great  Britain  is  also  well 
ascertained,  and  seems  from  the  latest  returns  to  be 
steadily  advancing. 

The  demand  for  Northwestern  products  for  exportation, 
is,  however,  far  from  being  the  only  dependence  of  the  pro- 
ducer. The  home  demand  increases  and  must  continue  to 
increase,  in  a  ratio  even  greater  than  the  foreign  demand. 
As  the  country  grows  richer,  a  larger  proportion  of  its 
population  is  withdrawn  from  agricultural  pursuits,  to  be 
employed  in  Manufactures  and  mining,  and  in  the  manage- 
ment of  internal  exchanges  and  transportation,  and  foreign 
navigation  and  commerce.  All  these  persons  ceasing  to 
grow  their  own  food,  and  consuming  freely,  since,  taken  as 
a  whole,  they  have  ample  means  to  purchase,  create  a  con- 
tinually expanding  demand,  which  for  the  last  five  years  at 
least,  has  not  been  overtaken  by  the  supply.  This  progress 
in  this  country  is  far  beyond  that  of  any  qther  part  of  the 
world,  in  the  rapidity  with  which  it  proceeds.  This  com- 
munication would  extend  to  too  great  a  length,  if  I  should 
collect  all  the  elements  which  would  be  necessary  to  judge 
accurately  how  fast  this  change  goes  on.  But  for  the  pre- 
sent purpose,  and  with  a  view  to  contrast  the  multitudes 
of  men  devoted  now  to  other  than  agricultural  pursuits, 
with  the  small  numbers  of  a  time  not  far  distant,  let  us  com- 
pare a  few  particulars  of  the  years  1830  and  1850. 

In  the  year  1830,  the  anthracite  coal  sent  to  market  from 
the  mines  of  Pennsylvania  was  less  than  one  hundred  and 
seventy-five  thousand  tons.  In  1850,  it  was  about  twenty 
times  that  amount.  In  1830,  the  iron  produced  in  the 
United  States  was  about  one  hundred  and  sixty-five  thou- 
sand tons,  or  about  as  much  as  Great  Britain  produced  in 
1800. 


130 

In  1850,  the  United  States  produced  about  four  times  as 
much  as  in  1830,  or  about  the  same  quantity  that  Great 
Britain  produced  in  1830.  The  cotton  manufactures  in 
the  United  States  consumed  in  1830,  forty-five  millions  of 
pounds  of  the  raw  material ;  in  1850.  two  hundred  and 
seventy  millions  of  pounds,  or  six  times  as  great  a  quantity. 

The  instruments  of  transportation  compare  as  follows, 
after  an  interval  of  twenty  years  only  : — 

1830.  1850. 

Miles  of  canal  in  operation,   .         .     1,277  3,698 

"     of  Railroad        "      .                     73  8,879 

"     of        «      in  construction,    .      338  11,000 

Tons  of  shipping,        .        .          1,191,776  3,535,454 

«    of      "      built  in  the  year,      58,094  272,218 

Number  of  steamers  built  in  last  5  yrs,   196  965 

The  growth  of  cities  is  more  remarkable  in  this  connec- 
tion than  even  the  facts  just  given.  In  1830,  only  one-six- 
teenth part  of  the  population  of  the  United  States  were 
collected  in  cities,  having  more  than  ten  thousand  inhabi- 
tants in  each.  In  1840,  about  one-thirteenth,  and  in  1850, 
about  one-eight  of  the  population  were  so  situated. 

The  number  of  persons  inhabiting  towns  of  more  than 
ten  thousand  inhabitants,  was  as  follows,  at  four  respective 
dates : 

1820.        1830.        1840.         1850. 

570,010        878,300        1,329,937        2,809,251 

The  last  number  may  be  somewhat  increased  upon  the 
publication  of  the  census  returns,  as  it  is  possible  that  my 
data  may  not  be  quite  complete  upon  this  point.  It  will 
be  perceived  from  the  figures  given  that  the  tendency  of  the 
population  to  congregate  in  cities  has  been,  as  might  be  ex- 
pected, much  stronger  in  the  last  ten  years  than  in  any 
previous  decade.  The  cities  which  now  contain  2.809,251, 
contained  in  1840,  when  several  of  them  were  only  small 


131 

towns,  1,514,103  inhabitants  ;  so  that  these  cities  have 
increased  in  ten  years,  eighty-five  and  a  half  per  cent. 
The  same  rate  of  increase,  for  the  next  ten  years,  will 
carry  these  cities  up  to  5,200,000  inhabitants,  to  which 
number  must  be  added  800,000  at  least,  for  about 
fifty  towns  now  below  the  standard.  Six  MILLIONS  of 
people  in  cities,  in  1860,  and  at  least  FOUR  MILLIONS  more 
engaged  in  manufactures,  mining,  and  mechanic  arts,  navi- 
gation and  transportation,  will  consume  each,  on  an  average, 
five  bushels  of  wheat,  with  other  bread  stuffs  and  provisions 
in  proportion,  all  to  be  grown  where  they  can  be  obtained 
cheapest,  reckoning  together  cost  of  growth,  and  of  trans- 
portation. Illinois  grows  these  products  as  cheaply  as  any 
spot  on  earth  already  ;  and  can  transport  them  as  cheaply 
as  most  regions  yielding  a  surplus  above  their  own  consump- 
tion, as  soon  as  the  avenue,  which  we  propose  to  open  for 
her  is  completed. 

These  ten  millions  of  inhabitants,  standing  in  the  place 
of  less  than  two  millions,  falling  within  the  same  categories 
in  1830,  not  only  create  a  market  for  all  the  agricultural 
products  which  they  consume,  and  thereby  hold  out  induce- 
ments to  the  emigrant  to  take  up  the  rich  lands  of  the 
Northwest,  and  avail  himself  of  this  market ;  but  they 
create  also  another  and  an  annually  increasing  demand, 
which  the  Northwest  only  can  meet.  As  wealth  accumu- 
lates, imported  comforts  and  luxuries  are  more  sought  for, 
and  these  can  only  be  paid  for  by  the  exportation  of  agricul- 
tural products.  The  excess,  beyond  what  cotton,  rice,  and 
tobacco  will  pay  for,  must  be  met  mostly  by  the  products  of 
the  Northwest. 

The  imports  of  the  year  1830,  were  $70,876,920,  but  in 
1 850,  they  had  risen  to  $178,138,318.  This  increased  pur- 
chase of  course,  took  off  increased  quantities  of  products  to 
pay  for  it.  The  imports  in  the  four  years  ending  with  1830, 
were  $313,363,339  ;  for  the  four  years  ending  with  1850, 
they  were  $627,519,323,  while  the  exports  for  four  years 
ending  in  1830,  were  $300,797,692,  and  for  four  years  end- 


132 

ing  in  1850,  they  were  $610,339,598.  The  imports  having 
doubled  in  twenty  years,  the  exports  have  doubled  also. 
Has  the  whole  demand,  both  domestic  and  foreign  taken 
together,  been  sufficient  to  keep  up  the  prices  of  the  surplus 
products  of  the  Northwest,  as  compared  with  the  prices  of 
manufactured  and  imported  articles  which  the  farmer  pur- 
chases with  the  disposable  portion  of  his  crop  ?  The  answer 
to  this  question  determines  whether  the  inducements  to  set- 
tle in  the  Northwest  are  gaining  strength ;  for  it  is  the 
amount  which  his  surplus  will  purchase  that  determines  the 
question  whether  the  farmer  will  grow  rich  or  poor. 

If  we  compare  the  four  last  years  with  the  four  preceding, 
we  shall  find : 

1st.  That  goods  manufactured  in  the  Eastern  States 
have  become  much  cheaper. 

2d.  That  imported  articles  have  grown  cheaper. 

3d.  That  agricultural  products  command  much  higher 
prices  than  before. 

4th.  That  the  cost  of  transporting  agricultural  produce 
from  the  West  to  the  seaboard,  and  manufactured 
and  imported  articles  from  the  seaboard  to  the  West 
has  been  materially  diminished,  and  is  likely  to  be 
still  more  so. 

Each  of  these  four  changes  is  of  vast  advantage  to  the 
settlers  on  the  public  lands,  and  their  combined  influence 
has  caused  wealth  to  pour  in  like  a  flood,  into  those  sections 
of  the  Northwest,  having  convenient  access  to  the  markets 
of  the  world.  Of  the  effect  of  this  tribute  of  wealth  upon 
the  accumulations  of  those  communities  who  receive  it,  I 
have  given  an  instance  in  Table  E,  showing  that  the  wealth 
of  the  thirteen  northern  counties  of  Illinois  was  six  times  as 
great  in  18 19,  as  it  had  been  nine  years  before,  in  1840. 


133 

But  the  accumulation  of  the  wealth  of  the  settler  is  by 
no  means  the  true  measure  of  the  improvement  of  his  con- 
dition, because  he  does  not  lay  up  all,  or  even  the  greater 
part  of  what  he  gains.  If  his  ordinary  income  is  doubled, 
he  doubles  his  consumption  of  those  articles  of  necessity, 
convenience  or  luxury,  which  he  obtains  from  a  distance ; 
for,  of  all  that  the  soil  about  him  yields,  he  consumed  to  the 
full  extent  of  his  inclination  before.  Let  us  form  a  more 
distinct  idea  of  the  effect  on  his  situation  of  the  four  changes 
I  have  just  enumerated,  by  tracing  out  their  operation  upon 
some  of  the  exchangeable  commodities  which  he  sells  and 
which  he  buys. 

I  select  iron,  because  it  is  an  article  of  universal  use,  and 
one,  the  cheapness  of  which  is  more  truly  essential  to  the 
progress  of  civilization  than  that  of  any  other.  In  fact,  to 
reduce  the  cost  of  iron  one-half  would  be  to  make  a  stride 
onward  in  all  the  conditions  of  well-being,  than  which,  few 
revolutions  in  the  history  of  the  world  have  been  more  pro- 
digious. 

To  investigate  the  case  of  one  kind  of  iron  is  quite  suffi- 
cient, because  this  may  serve  as  a  symbol  of  all  the  others, 
which  are  all  affected  substantially  in  the  same  manner. 
The  Northwest  is  likely  to  build  a  thousand  miles  of  Rail- 
road, and  to  require  a  hundred  thousand  tons  of  rolled  bar 
iron  annually  for  some  years  to  come.  As  the  cultivator  of 
Northwestern  lands  pays  for  this  iron  in  the  products  of  his 
soil,  the  question  for  the  Northwest  will  be,  how  much  flour, 
wheat,  corn  or  other  produce  will  purchase  the  quantity  of 
iron  which  the  Northwest,  at  the  lowest  prices,  would  ad- 
vantageously consume  ? 

The  price  of  rolled  bar  iron  at  Liverpool  has  for  months 
past  averaged  considerably  less  than  thirty  dollars  :  but  as 
this  price  has  undoubtedly  been  too  low  to  yield  a  fair  re- 
turn on  the  labor  and  capital  employed  in  producing  it,  I 
•will  suppose  the  price  for  some  time  to  come  to  average 
thirty  dollars,  including  port  charges  and  commissions.  The 

cost  laid  down  at  Detroit  will  be  nearly  as  follows : 
12 


134 

100,000  Tons   of   Rolled  Iron,  at 
§30  Per  ton  at  Liverpool,  will  equal 


$3,000,000  Cost  at  Liverpool ;  add 

500,000  Freight  to  New- York,  at  $5.00. 
90,000  Insurance  at  three  per  cent. 
900,000  Duties  at  thirty  per  cent. 
525,000  Freight  to  Detroit  at  $5.25. 


$5,015,000  Cost  at  Detroit,  or  $50.15  per  ton. 

This  is  to  be  paid  for,  say  in  flour,  which,  at  the  port  of 
exportation,  has  averaged  for  the  last  four  years  $5.77-g-. 
Call  this  sum  $5.75,  and  deduct  one  dollar  for  freight  from 
Detroit  to  New- York,  and  we  have  $4.75  realized  at  Detroit 
for  a  barrel  of  flour.  At  these  prices  one  hundred  thousand 
tons  of  rails  would  cost  at  Detroit  1,055,989  barrels  of  flour. 
One  ton  of  iron  would  cost  ten  and  a  half  barrels  of  flour  to 
the  Michigan  purchaser. 

Take  now  the  same  exchanges,  at  the  prices  ruling  from 
1843  to  1846  inclusive,  and  mark  the  difference  in  the  re- 
sult. The  average  price  of  the  rolled  iron  imported  into  the 
United  States  in  the  four  yenrs  and  two  months,  ending 
November  30th,  1846,  was  $35.22^  per  ton.  The  duty  was 
$25.00  per  ton,  and  the  freight  to  Detroit  from  New- York, 
from  $7.00  to  $8.00  per  ton.  To  err  on  the  safe  side,  if  at 
all,  we  will  call  it  §7.00.  The  difference  in  the  freight  of 
flour  was  more  than  twenty-five  cents  ;  but  I  will  assume  it 
to  be  no  more,  and  call  the  freight  $1.25  per  barrel.  The 
calculation  stands  thus : 

100,000  Tons  of  rolled  iron  at 
35,22^  Average  of  four  years  and  two  months. 

$3,522,500  Cost  at  Liverpool. 
500;000  Freight  to  New- York. 
105,675  Insurance  at  3  per  cent. 
2,500,000  Duty  at  $25.00  per  ton. 
700,000  Freight  to  Detroit,  at  $7.00. 


[,328,175  Cost  at  Detroit,  1843  to  1846. 


135 

This  is  equal  to  $73.28  per  ton,  instead  of  $50.15  at  the 
present  time,  according  to  our  computation.  But  in  point 
of  fact,  iron  in  1846  would  have  cost  in  Detroit  over  $80.00, 
and  it  has  been  laid  down  there  during  the  past  summer  at 
$43.75.  The  results  of  our  calculation,  however,  make  a 
case  quite  strong  enough.  The  flour  exported  from  1843  to 
1846  inclusive,  averaged  $4.79  ;  say  $4.75  to  the  shipper. 
Deduct  freight  to  the  seaboard,  $1.25,  and  there  remains 
$3.50  to  be  realized  in  Detroit.  To  purchase  one  hundred 
thousand  tons  of  iron  at  the  price  of  $73.28  and  a  fraction 
per  ton,  will  require  2.093.764  barrels  of  flour  at  $3.50. 

That  is  to  say,  for  four  years  previous  to  the  30th  Novem- 
ber, 1846,  a  ton  of  iron  cost  the  purchaser  at  Detroit  twenty- 
one  barrels  of  flour :  for  four  years  after  that  date,  it  cost 
him  less  and  less  every  year  ;  and  for  the  last  year,  it  has 
cost  him,  in  fact,  less  than  ten  and  a  half  barrels. 

If  we  measure  the  cost  of  the  same  ton  of  iron  in  corn, 
which  could  be  brought  to  a  seaport  for  twenty-five  cents  a 
bushel  during  the  last  four  years,  and  for  thirty  cents  dur- 
ing the  last  four  years  next  preceding ;  the  corn,  which,  in 
the  four  years  ending  in  1846,  sold  for  fifty-five  cents  a 
bushel,  leaves  for  the  producer  twenty-five  cents  ;  that 
which  was  shipped  in  the  next  four  years  brought  71.65, 
about  seventy-one  and  two-thirds  cents,  leaving  for  the  pro- 
ducer 46.65  per  bushel. 

One  ton  of  iron  at  §73,28  costs  293  bushels  at  25.00  cents. 
«     «         «  50.15     «    107      "  46.65    " 

But  if  we  suppose  the  purchaser  to  be  situated  one  hun- 
dred miles  south  of  Chicago,  in  Champaign  County,  Illinois, 
the  ton  of  iron  which,  after  the  Central  Railroad  is  opened, 
he  can  buy  for  125  or  150  bushels  of  corn,  would  have  cost 
him  before  1846  from  eight  hundred  to  a  thousand  bushels 
of  corn.  A  change  of  itself  enough  to  make  the  solitary 
places  glad,  and  the  desert  to  rejoice  and  blossom  with  rich 
abundance. 

The  increased  price  of  agricultural  products  since  1846, 


136 

is  not  peculiar  to  flour  and  corn ;  it  extends  to  pork,  bacon, 
wheat,  cotton,  pearlash,  and  most  other  articles,  whether 
used  for  food  or  otherwise. 

Wheat  sold  from  1843  to  1846,  for,        96|  cents. 
Deduct  freight  to  seaport,      .        .       30        " 

Remains  for  producer,       .        .         63f      " 

Wheat  sold  from  1847  to  1850,  for,    .        $1.29.6 
Deduct  freight  to  seaport,      .        .        .        .25 


Remains  for  producer,   .        .        .        $1.04.6 

One  ton  of  iron  at  73.28  costs  110  bushels  at     66|    cents. 
«      «         "    at  50.15    «       48       "      at  $1.04.6   " 

Ashes  sold  from  1843  to  1846,  for    $62.85  per  ton. 
Deduct  freight  to  seaport,  .        .        8.00 


Remains  for  producer,        .         $54.85 

Ashes  sold  from  1847  to  1 850,  for    $94.91  per  ton. 
Deduct  freight  to  seaport,  .        .        6.00 


Remains  for  producer,        .        $88.91 

One  ton  of  iron  at  $73.28  costs  133  tons  ashes  at    54.85 
"      "  «    at    50.15    «     56|    "        "     at    88.91 

Cotton  sold  from  1843  to  1846,  for   6.87  cents  per  Ib. 
Deduct  freight  to  seaport,        .          57 

Remains  to  planter,        .        .     6.30  cents. 

Cotton  sold  from  1847  to  1850,  for  8.417  cents  per  Ib. 
Deduct  freight  to  seaport,       .        .417 

Remains  to  planter,    .        .        8  cents. 


137 

One  ton  of  iron  at  $73.28  costs  1162  Ibs.  of  cotton  at  6.3  cts. 
«      "         "    at    50.15    «      627    "  "         8 

Nor  is  iron  the  only  great  article  of  import  that  has  fallen 
in  cost.  Most  imports  have  fallen  since  1846,  some  more, 
some  less. 

If  we  take  the  article  of  brown  sugar,  which  next  after 
iron,  materials  for  clothing,  and  coffee,  is  more  largely  im- 
ported than  any  other  commodity,  we  shall  find  that  the 
advantage  gained  by  the  settler  in  this  article  is  quite  as 
great  as  in  iron.  Indeed,  the  cheapness  of  this  agreeable 
luxury  to  the  consumer  has  caused  the  consumption  to  be 
doubled  during  the  period  since  1846. 

Quantity  and  Value  of  Brown  Sugar  imported. 

4  years  and  2  months,  to  30th  November,  1846, 520,059.585  Ibs.    $20,448,428 
Which  is  per  year,         ....        124,814,300  "  4,907,598 

At  a  cost  per  pound  of  3.932  cents. 
3  years  and  7  months,  from  30th  Nov.  1846,    894,372,984  Ibs.    $31,437,131 

Which  is  per  year, 249,592,460  "  8,773,153 

At  a  cost  per  pound  of  3.515  cents. 

By  the  tariff  of  30th  August,  1842,  brown  sugar  paid  a 
duty  of  two  and  a  half  cents  per  pound  ;  while  by  the  tariff 
of  30th  July,  1846,  it  pays  but  30  per  cent,  ad  valorem. 
Eight  mills  will  convey  a  pound  of  sugar  quite  as  far  into 
Illinois  as  sixteen  mills  would  have  done  in  1844. 

One  million  of  pounds  of  brown  sugar  cost 

From  1843  to  1846.  1847  to  1850. 

1,320  first  purchase.       $35,150  first  purchase. 
25,000  duty.  10,545  duty. 

5,000  freight.  4,000  freight. 

786  ins.  2  per  cent.  703  ins.  2  per  cent. 

16,000  freight  to  Illinois.     8,000  freight  to  Illinois. 


$86,106  $58,398 

One  million  of  pounds  of  sugar,  at  the  price  previous  to 
November  30th,  1846,  or  $86,106,  costs  in  flour  at  $3.50 
per  barrel,  24,601  barrels. 


138 

At  the  price  since  30th  November,  1846,  or  $58,398,  it 
•will  cost  the  consumer  in  flour  at  $4.75  per  barrel  12,294 
barrels,  or  less  than  half  the  amount  of  the  produce  of  his 
soil,  which  he  paid  in  1845,  or  on  the  average  of  the  four 
years  ending  in  November,  1846. 

If  this  million  of  pounds  of  sugar  were  paid  for  in  wheat, 
at  the  price  previous  to  November,  1846,  it  would 
cost, 129,000  bush. 

But  at  the  price  since  that  time  only,  .        55,830     " 

Making  a  saving  of,        ....      73.170  bush. 

So  that  that  section  of  country  could  well  afford  to  double 
its  consumption  of  sugar,  as  in  fact  the  whole  country  has 
done,  because  after  paying  for  that  double  consumption, 
there  will  still  remain  a  large  surplus  for  other  purchases. 

If  paid  for  in  corn  at  the  prices  as  given  before,  this  quan- 
tity of  sugar  would  cost  in  Illinois,  in  the  first  period 
given, 344,464  bush. 

But  in  the  second  period,        .        .  125,184     " 


Making  a  saving  of,     ....        219,280  bush. 

If  paid  in  pot  and  pearl  ashes,  it  would  cost 

in  the  first  period,      ....        1,570  tons. 

In  the  second  period,  about,        .        . .  657  tons. 

Making  a  saving  of, 913  tons. 

If  paid  for  in  cotton,  it  would  cost  in 

the  first  period,        .        .        .        1,366,763  pounds. 

In  the  second  period,        .        .        .      729,975        " 
Making  a  saving  of,        ...     636,788  pounds. 

The  cost  of  textile  fabrics,  both  imported  and  manufactur- 
ed at  home,  has  also  diminished,  though  not  in  so  large  a 


139 

ratio  as  iron  and  sugar.  The  same  is  true,  though  gener- 
ally in  a  less  degree,  of  almost  every  article  the  farmer  buys  ; 
while  there  has  been  a  rise  in  price,  on  the  average  of  the 
last  four  years  over  that  of  the  four  preceding,  on  almost 
every  article  the  farmer  sells. 

The  inducements  held  out  to  the  emigrant  to  settle  upon 
the  public  lands  at  the  Northwest,  have  never  before  been 
so  great  as  since  1846,  yet  there  cannot  be  a  question  that 
the  facilities  of  communication,  soon  to  be  created,  will 
vastly  enhance  these  inducements.  They  will,  in  fact,  carry 
all  the  conveniences  and  refinements  of  old  and  densely 
settled  societies  into  regions  where  the  price  of  land  is 
almost  nominal,  compared  with  older  States,  and  where  that 
land  yields  almost  spontaneously,  for  a  long  series  of  years, 
harvests  whose  abundance  seems  almost  fabulous. 

I  have  shown  the  rates  at  which  population  has  increased 
for  the  last  ten  years,  and  have  submitted  estimates  founded 
on  past  experience  and  making  little  or  no  allowance  for 
the  improved  circumstances  of  the  settler,  such  as  I  have 
just  been  examining.  One  question  only  remains  to  be 
now  considered.  Strong  as  are  the  inducements  to  emigrants 
to  settle  these  fertile  regions,  immensely  as  these  induce- 
ments will  be  heightened  and  strengthened  by  our  Railroad 
and  other  avenues  now  in  process  of  construction,  are  there 
sources  sufficient  to  supply  this  emigration  ?  If  there  are 
not,  the  progress  of  population  will  be  checked  for  want  of 
supplies  from  without.  New-England  and  six  other  of  the  old 
States  which  have  generally  supplied  emigrants  to  the  West, 
have  usually  sent  out  about  twenty  per  cent,  of  their  popu- 
lation in  ten  years ;  but  as  they  are  now  increasing  much 
more  rapidly  at  home,  we  will  suppose  them  to  send  out  but 
12|  per  cent,  for  the  next  ten  years.  Their  whole  population 
being  6,898,082,  this  per  centage  would  give  an  immigration 
to  the  West  of  862,260. 

The  emigration  from  foreign  countries  has  been  increasing 
very  rapidly  for  the  last  four  years,  and  thus  far  this  year 


140 

is  twenty-five  per  cent,  over  last  year,  at  New-York,  where 
the  arrivals  are  most  numerous.  If  we  suppose  it  to  increase 
four  per  cent,  only  each  year,  from  last  year,  and  allow  for 
the  natural  increase  after  arrival,  we  shall  have  an  increase 
to  the  population,  from  this  source,  in  the  next  ten  years,  of 

4,508,600  as  per  Table  G. 
To  which  add  from  old  States,     862,260 


And  the  total  is,      .     5,370,860 

Of  this  sum,  certainly  more  than  four  and  a  half  millions 
will  be  added  to  the  Northwestern  States. 

The  population  of  these  States  is  for  the 

three  older,  3,827,582 

The  four  younger,         ....        1,581,870 


Total  seven  Northwestern  States,  .  .  5,409,452 
Add  natural  increase  for  ten  years,  .  1,803.150 
Addition  from  emigration,  say,  .  .  4,500,000 


Total  for  1860,   .      *•"$$     .      :.      11,712,602 

This  is  two  and  a  half  millions  more  than  our  former 
calculations,  and  serves  to  demonstrate  that  the  data  on 
which  they  were  founded  are  at  least  not  extravagant. 

Let  us  see  what  increase  we  may  allow  to  each  North- 
western State,  and  still  be  within  the  limits  of  this  total. 

Ohio  receives  nothing  from  emigration.  Indiana  receives 
less  from  emigration  than  New-York  and  Georgia  send  out 
in  ten  years.  We  may  omit  Ohio  and  Indiana  therefore  in 
disposing  of  the  emigration  from  abroad,  yet  to  be  beyond 
the  reach  of  cavil  here  we  will  allow  them  to  receive  250,000 
of  these  emigrants. 

I  place  then  in  the  first  column  the  rate  per  cent,  at 
which  I  assumed  the  Northwestern  States  would  advance, 


141 

and  the  population  for  1860  at  that  rate  on  the  next  column  ; 
I  then  give  an  assumed  rate  for  each  State,  with  the  popu- 
lation at  that  rate,  so  as  to  produce  a  total  still  short  of 
what  emigration  will  provide  for. 


Inc.  from  1850. 
Ohio  30  per  cent. 
Indiana  45  per  cent. 
Illinois  110.4  per  cent. 


Pop.  in  I860.    Inc.  per  cent.  Pop.  in  1860. 

.    2,576,522      37.57    2,726,522 

1,435,874      55.98    1.535,874 

.    1,798,854    175.        2,352,316 


5,811,250 

Michigan  72.94  per  cent.  .       695,317  100. 

Wisconsin  220.95  per  cent.      970,620  300. 

Missouri  76,02  per  cent.   .    1,200,540  100. 

Iowa  163.42  per  cent.              506,408  200. 


6,614,712 

804,082 

1,222,152 

1,364,088 

576,741 


3,372,885  3,967,063 

Three  older  States,     .        .     6,614,712 
Four  younger  States,     •  .  :  •     3,967,063 


Number  at  the  rates  given,     10,581,775 


And  this  leaves  still  more  than  a  million  to  be  disposed 
of.  If  it  be  said  that  a  million  more  than  I  have  supposed 
will  remain  in  the  old  States,  it  must  be  because  land  in 
the  new  States  will  have  risen  to  a  higher  level  than  its 
value,  considering  its  distance  from  market.  But  the 
accessible  lands  of  the  West  cannot  generally  reach  this 
level  until  long  after  all  the  lands  within  fifteen  miles  of 
the  Illinois  Central  Hail  Road,  have  risen  to  prices  far 
above  the  average  of  the  lands  of  Ohio. 

The  population  assigned  to  Illinois  in  this  distribution, 
would  give  her  a  population  of  forty- two  to  the  square  mile  ; 
in  which  case  the  lands  of  the  whole  State  should  average 
over  ten  dollars  to  the  acre,  a  result  that  would  not  be 
reached  without  raising  the  lands  on  the  line  of  the  Rail- 
road to  more  than  fifteen  dollars  per  acre. 


142 

It  is  safe,  then,  to  assume  that  the  land  belonging  to  the 
Uuited  States  in  Illinois,  already  reduced  more  than  five 
millions  of  acres,  below  its  amount  in  June  1850,  by  the 
grant  of  more  than  two  and  a  half  millions  to  the  Central 
Rail  Road,  by  the  grant  of  all  the  swamp  lands,  and  by 
the  sales  and  location  of  land  warrants,  will  all  be  taken 
up,  so  far  as  they  are  made  accessible,  in  much  less  than  ten 
years'  time,  and  that  the  lands  remaining  in  the  hands  of 
the  Trustees,  pledged  for  the  bonds  of  the  Company,  will 
rise  to  an  average  value  of  from  ten  to  twelve  dollars  in  a 
period  perhaps  not  exceeding  ten  years  from  the  present 
date,  certainly  not  exceeding  ten  years  from  the  opening 
of  the  Railroad  running  through  the  whole  length  of  these 
lands. 

It  may  be  proper  to  remark  that  the  lands  of  Ohio,  of 
which  I  gave  the  official  value  in  the  outset,  include  much 
that  is  of  inferior  quality  and  much  not  easily  accessible, 
and  that  if  we  take  only  such  of  their  lands  as  ought  fairly 
to  be  compared  to  the  lands  on  the  line  of  our  road,  citizens 
of  Ohio  uniformly  estimate  them  at  from  twenty-five  to  fifty 
dollars  an  acre. 


To  recapitulate,  I  have  shown  that  our  lands  lie  along 
the  natural  route  of  the  greatest  thoroughfare  on  the  con- 
tinent, that  connecting  the  Northeast,  and  the  Basin  of  the 
lakes  with  the  Southwest  and  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  thence 
with  the  coast  of  the  Pacific ;  that  the  land  between  the  Mid- 
dle States  and  Illinois  is  taken  up  ;  that  the  younger  States 
have  a  vast  surface  of  land  which  is  inaccessible  ;  that  the 
small  portion  which  is  accessible  is  settled  already  more 
densely  than  Illinois ;  that  Illinois,  notwithstanding  her 
embarrassments,  has  sold  more  land  and  added  greater 
numbers  to  her  population  than  any  other  State  of  the 
Northwest ;  that  this  is  what  should  be  expected  from  the 
fertility  of  her  soil ;  that  where  her  land  is  open  to  easy 
access  the  increase  in  numbers  and  wealth  is  amazing  and 


143 

/• 

almost  incredible  ;  and  that  the  districts  through  which  our 

O 

road  runs,  are  only  waiting  for  an  avenue  to  market  to 
advance  at  the  same  rate.  I  have  shown  our  exports  of  the 
products  of  the  Northwest  increasing  from  seventy-one 
millions  to  one  hundred  and  seventy-one  millions  of  dollars 
in  value  in  four  years  ;  while  such  is  the  increase  of  popu- 
lation not  agricultural,  from  increased  manufactures, 
navigation,  commerce,  and  city  life,  that  together  with  the 
demand  for  export,  they  have  caused  the  prices  of  all 
Northwestern  products  to  rule  higher,  in  spite  of  the  vastly 
augmented  number  of  producers. 

I  have  shown  that  the  settler  in  Illinois  may  obtain  much 
more  of  all  that  he  wishes  to  buy  for  a  given  amount  of  his 
produce,  and  for  some  of  the  most  important  articles  at 
least  twice  as  much  as  he  could  do  five  or  six  years  ago. 
Consequently  inducements  to  settlers  are  stronger  now 
than  ever ;  and  when  we  find  emigration  proceeding  at  a 
rate  which  will  add  five  or  six  millions  to  the  population  in 
ten  years,  we  inquire  to  what  section  of  the  country  will 
these  emigrants  be  drawn,  and  find  no  reason  why  Illinois 
should  not,  as  she  has  done  for  several  years  past,  receive  a 
larger  number  than  any  other  State. 


Calculating  her  increase  of  population  at  rates  far  below 
what  our  data  will  justify,  we  find  it  reaches  a  density 
which  has  never  failed  to  give  to  land  a  value  much  higher 
than  is  fully  adequate  to  discharge  the  whole  amount  of  the 
bonds  to  be  predicated  on  our  land  in  less  than  half  the 
time  they  have  to  run.  The  remaining  half  of  that  period 
is  certainly  a  suflBcient  time  to  be  allowed  for  all  possible 
contingencies  of  war,  pestilence,  or  other  disturbances  of  the 
ordinary  current  of  events. 

I  consider  then  that  any  estimate  which  shall  give  to 
the  lands  belonging  to  the  Company  an  average  value  of 
from  ten  to  twelve  dollars  an  acre  to  be  reached  in  twelve 


144 

or  fourteen  years  from  this  date,  is  amply  sustained  by  the 
facts  presented  in  this  communication. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be, 

Very  respectfully, 

Your  obt  servant, 

ROBERT  RANTOUL,  JR. 

ROBERT  SCHUYLER,  Esq., 
President  of  the 

Illinois  Central  Railroad  Co., 

New-  York. 


145 
TABLE  A. 

Area  of  Northwestern  Stales  and  Land  unsold  on  the 
June,  1850. 


Slates. 

Sq.  Miles. 

Acres. 

Unsold. 

Swamp. 

Ohio,      . 
Indiana, 
Illinois,     . 

39,964 
33,809 
55,405 

25,576,960 
21,637,760 
35,459,200 

367,742 
1,511,266 
11,449,471 

303,329 
981,682 
1,833,412 

129,178    82,673,920      13,328,479    3,118,423 


Michigan, 

56,243 

35,995,520 

20,215,749 

4,544,189 

Wisconsin, 

53,924 

34,511,360 

24,774,656 

1,259,269 

Missouri, 

67,380 

43,123,200 

27,275,029 

1,517,287 

Iowa, 

50,914 

32,584,960 

26,512,387 

33,813 

228,461  146,215,040      98,777,821    7,354,558 


TABLE  B. 

Showing  the  Population  and  Number  to  a  square  mile  of 
the  Northwestern  States  in  1840  and  in  1850. 


States. 
Ohio, 
Indiana, 
Illinois, 


Michigan, 
Wisconsin, 
Missouri    . 
Iowa,     . 


Pop.  in  1840.  Pr,  sq.  mile. 

1,519,467  34.46 

685,866  20.28 

.  476,183  8.59 


2,681.516 
.  212,267 

30,945 
383,702 

43,112 


20.76 

3.77 

.57 

5.69 

.84 


Pop.  in  1850.  Pr. 

sq.  mile. 

1,981,940 

49.58 

990,258 

29.29 

855,384 

15.45 

3,827,582 

29.63 

402,041 

7.15 

305,538 

5.65 

682,044 

10.12 

192,247 

3.77 

670,026          2.93       1,581,870 


6.92 


Three  older,     . 
Four  younger, 


RECAPITULATION. 


2,681,516 
670,026 


20.76     3,827.582 
2.93     1,581,870 


29.63 
6.92 


3,351,542          9.37      5,409,452        11.82 


These  figures  may  require  to  be  slightly  altered  on  the 
publication  of  the  corrected  census. 


State.           Acres  parted  with  to  June  30,  1  850. 

Ohio,     . 
Indiana,     . 
Illinois, 

25,209,218 
20,126,494    . 
24,009,728 

69,345,440 

Michigan,  . 
Wisconsin, 
Missouri,     . 
Iowa, 

15,779,771    .        . 
9,736,704 
15,848,171    . 
6,072,573 

146 


TABLE  C. 

Showing  the  quantities  of  Land  sold,  granted,  and  other- 
wise conveyed,  in  the  Northwestern  States,  up  to  June 
30,  1850,  and  the  averaged  number  of  acres  per  head  to 
the  population  of  each  State. 

Acres  per  head. 

12.70 
.   20.36 
28.00 

18.13 

.   40.00 
32.00 
.    23.16 

31.60 

47,437,219  30.10 


TABLE  D. 

Showing  the  actual  Increase  of  eleven  States  from  which 
emigration  has  been  usual,  with  the  rate  of  increase  and 
the  number  emigrating. 

States.  1830.  1840.  Inc.per.ct.    1850.  lnc.per.ct. 

N.  E.  without  Maine,  1,555,252  1,732,990    11.43    2,146,476    23.86 

N.  J.,  Del.,  Md.  &  D.  C.,  884,469  964,357      9.03    1,206,608    25.12 

Va.,  N.  C.,  &  S.  C.,  2,530,577  2,587,614      2.25    2,961,980    14.08 

4,970,298    5,284,961      6.33    6.315,064    19.50 
Natural  increase  33}    .        .        .        1,656,766        1,761,653 
Actual  increase,        ....       314,663        1,030,103 

Emigration,        ....  1,342,103          731,550 

Natural  increase  1840  to  1850,    .        .        1,761,653 
Increase  of  at  6.33  only,  .        .        .        .       334,714 

Emigration  at  that  rate,        .        .        .        1,426,939 
Actual  emigration,  .....       731,550 

Lee*  than  the  rate  from  1840  to  1850,  695,389 


147 
TABLE  E. 

Showing  the  Population  and  Valuation  of  the  thirteen 
Counties  on  the  line  of  the  Chicago  and  Galena  Rail- 
road in  1840  and  1849. 


Counties.   Pop.  1840.    1850. 


Vol.  1840. 


Vol.  1849. 


Jo  Davies,      6,180 

18,767 

383,715 

2,785,225 

Slephenson,     2,800 

11,666 

125,485 

837,685 

"Winnebago,     4,609 

11,731 

222,630 

1,564.617 

McHenry,       2.578 

15,800 

88,930 

1,545,277 

Lake,               2,634 

14,134 

95,385 

1,222,088 

DeKalb,           1,697 

7,544 

66,945 

720,108 

Kane,              6,551 

16,242 

289,565 

1,442,001 

Du  Page,        3,535 

9,290 

196,290 

943,503 

Cook,             10,201 

43,280 

1,864,205 

7,617,102 

Boone,            1,705 

7,627 

55,990 

717,292 

Kendall,            new 

7,730 

1,205,739 

Carroll,            1,023 

4,586 

65,345 

370,372 

Ogle,               3,479 

10,020 

175,555 

971,230 

46,992      178,417        3,630,040      21,942,239 

Population  in  1840,  46,992.  Valuation,  $3,630,040. 
Per  head,  $77.25. 

Population  in  1850,  178,417,  by  United  States  census. 

Deduct  15,000,  increase  1849  to  1850. 

Population  in  1849,  163,417.  Valuation,  $21,942,239. 
Per  head,  $134.27. 

TABLE  F. 

Showing  the   Exports  of  Vegetable  Food  and  Animal 
Products  from  1843  to  1850,  inclusive. 


Animal. 

Vegetable. 

Total. 

$3,963,694 

$6,955,908 

$10,919,602 

6,149,379 

11,239,437 

17,388.816 

6,206.394 

9,810,508 

16,016,902 

7,833,864 

19,329,585 

27,163,449 

24,153,331        47,335,438          71,488,669 


1847, 
1848, 
1849, 
1850, 

11,113,074 
12,538,896 
13,153,302 
10,549,383 

57,070,356 
25,185,647 
25,642,362 
15,822,373 

68,183,430 
37,724,543 
38,795,664 
26,371,756 

$47,354,655    $123,720,738       $171,075,393 


148 

TABLE  G, 
Sources  of  Emigration  to  the  Northwest  from  1850  to  1860. 

Twelve  old  Slates.  Pop.  in  1850. 

New  England,      .     •;•'.        .    •  v-';r        ;ijl      .        2,729,494 
Delaware,  Maryland,  including  District  Columbia 

and  New  Jersey,      .        .      !  .        .        .    1,206,608 
Virginia  and  the  Carolinas,      .    .        .        .        2,961,980 


Total  of  States  sending  out  emigrants,     'i1       .     6,898,082 
Emigration  at  12^  per  cent.,        .        .        .  862,260 

Emigrants  arriving  in  the  United  States  in  1849, 
299,610 ;  in  1850.  315,333. 

From  January  1.  1851,  to  September  2,  1851,  eight 
months,  there  arrived  at  New- York  alone,  198,288.  They 
are  now  arriving  at  the  rate  of  more  than  one  thousand  per 
day.  The  arrivals  at  New- York  exceed  by  25  per  cent 
those  of  last  year.  Suppose  the  increase  of  each  year  to  be 
four  per  cent,  only,  and  we  have  for, 

1851,  V'  . 

1852, 

1853,   . 

1854, 

1855,   .:   * 

Total  for  five  years,     1,776,223  2,161,030 

Increase  20  per  cent.,     355,244  Inc.  10  pr.  ct.  216.103 


327,946 

1856, 

398,985 

341,055 

1857, 

414,944 

354,697 

1858, 

431,541 

368,885 

1859, 

448,804 

383,640 

1860, 

456,756 

2,131,467  2,377,133 

2,131,467 


Total  emigration  for  ten  years,  with  increase,  4,508,600 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 


DOCUMENTS  RELATING  TO  THE  ORGANIZATION  0 


